Back to school means it is time to take the kids school shopping, help them pick out their first-day-of-school outfit and reconvene with your ex to make sure that all arrangements pertaining to the child custody agreement still make sense in the face of the new school year.
Particularly if a divorce just occurred in the last few summer months, it is important to be prepared for everything the school year will throw at divorced parents. Who will the kids stay with over breaks? Who will pick the kids up on early release days? Who will pick the kids up if an illness arises? There are a lot of factors that if not decided beforehand can lead to increased tension and frustration.
Listed below is some tips from another individual with a lot of experience in family law matters, particularly as they relate to the custody of young children.
- Share a calendar: Sharing an online calendar will help map out all the vacations, early release days and field trips so that each parent can remain fully aware of the happenings in their child’s life. Additionally, if changes are made or something comes up, there is a record of who made changes and when.
- Paperwork: Make sure that the school is aware of the addresses of both parents, as well as which parent is the primary address for the child. It is also important to distinguish which parent the school should contact first in case of emergencies.
- Arrangements: Find a neutral place that is not the school for visitation arrangements. Also, be sure not to make your child rely important information to your ex, it is important that each parent learn to communicate, even if through email, to spare putting the child in an uncomfortable position.
Following these tips should aid Texas parents recently divorced in logistically and emotionally preparing for back to school this year.
Source: The Huffington Post, “Divorcing Parents: 5 Tips For A Successful School Year,” Bari Zell Weinberger, Aug. 28, 2012
