Back to School Reset: The 5 Steps to Success for the Start of the School Year
September means new beginnings. It’s a new season and a new chapter of life, whether that means a new grade or a new school!
I love new beginnings because it is a chance to evaluate where you’re currently at versus where you want to be. It is a chance to take a look at the habits you want to keep with you as we move toward the end of 2026 and separate those from the habits you want to get rid of.
This is why I’ve created the “5 Step Reset” for the start of the school year. This is a great opportunity to take the habits and goals you’ve set over the summer and implement them into your busy school routine, whether that may be something as simple as eating 2 vegetables a day or something bigger like working toward running your first 5k by the end of Fall.
Step 1: Get Organized
My favorite part of starting a new chapter of life is the planning (very Type A of me, I know). You can make this as simple or as detailed as you want. The important part is that it gets done.
You might be thinking, why?
Getting organized is the first step in every life reset because you cannot reach your goals and find success if you do not have a plan and a schedule.
How can you get all of your homework assignments completed if you don’t know when they’re due? How can you start studying for exams a week in advance if you’ve forgotten about them until the day before?
This is why having a calendar or a planner is so important. This brings us to our first Action Step.
Action Step #1: Ask your parents for a 2026-2027 school year planner. I always purchased an appointment book planner so that I could plan out my evenings hour-by-hour. For example, highlighting 7pm-8pm as “math homework” time or 4pm-5pm as “study time.” This really helps you stay on track and organized.
Additionally, I recommend color-coding for extra organization. Pick a color for each class and use that in your planner for any time spent on class assignments or studying. This way, when you look across your week, you can see clearly if additional time might be needed for specific colors (classes).
Along with classes, your planner should include all of your extracurricular activities. You can’t schedule history homework for Tuesday evenings if you have dance class all night! So, having your outside-of-school commitments written down in your school calendar/planner is equally as important. I’d suggest picking a color for all of these as well! That way, if you have work to do for your extracurriculars (e.g. practicing piano or memorizing lines for a show), you can add that into your weekly to-dos.
Check out my favorite appointment-book planner on Amazon for only $11.99: https://amzn.to/4x72cYX
Or, for something a bit less detailed, check out this School Year Planner: https://amzn.to/4yiC4LH
Step 2: Get Your Sleep
There is a misconception among teenagers that staying up late and even pulling “all-nighters” is cool. I’ve even heard the excuse, “I had to stay up all night to study!”
Well, let me tell you this: Sacrificing sleep is not a secret for academic success.
Research shows that students who consistently get adequate sleep perform significantly higher in school and on tests than those who are sleep deprived. So, why jeopardize your academic success by staying up extra late?
Unfortunately, you might not be able to control how early you have to get up for school. Some school buses may come as early as 6am, causing many students to be up by 5:15am most days.
This is why going to bed on time is the key to making sure you are getting adequate sleep so that you can show up as your best self daily.
The standard recommendation for teens is 8-10 hours of sleep per night. This means that if you are waking up at 6am for school, you must be asleep before 10pm the night before, ideally closer to 8pm or 9pm.
This is why our second Action Step is so important. Action Step #2: Figure Out Your Ideal Pre-Sleep Routine and Stick to It. Many people have trouble falling asleep earlier, especially if your sleep routines were very different during the summer months. Establishing an ideal pre-sleep routine that helps you wind down in time to fall asleep and get those 8-10 hours of sleep is essential for success.
For me, this looks like plugging my phone in and putting it on Do Not Disturb, showering, brushing my teeth, doing any skincare, and putting on a comfy pair of pajamas before climbing into bed and reading 3 chapters of a book. I like to stick to chapters rather than time so that I don’t have to stop mid-chapter! This is what works for me, but find what works for you and try sticking to it for the remainder of the month to see if it works!
Step 3: Get Nourished
If you participated in ShoreStrong Summer Programs, you know how important nutrition really is for our daily energy levels, mood, and brain function. With the start of a new school year, prioritizing nutrition can help you stay motivated and focused during class, as well as provide you with the energy to be social during lunch and participate in after-school activities.
Action Step #3: Work with your parents to create a shopping list of items for nourishing meals and snacks. Some simple snack ideas can include apples and peanut butter, homemade energy bites, homemade granola bars, or carrots and hummus! The key here is to prioritize nutrient-dense, whole foods with plenty of vitamins and minerals.
It is also important to start your day off right. Students who eat breakfast before school often have higher levels of alertness and focus, as well as greater test scores! So, whether it’s a full breakfast of eggs, toast, and fruit, or even something small like a banana and a granola bar, eat your breakfast! Bonus points if you can pick a protein-packed breakfast, as this will help keep you satisfied and fueled throughout your morning classes!
Step 4: Get Active
The start of the school year is a busy time. It is a time where habits from the summer are often tossed aside to make room for studying, homework, activities, and spending time with friends. However, we cannot neglect our health simply because we are busy.
Staying active has so many benefits, not only physically, but mentally as well. To name a few, staying physically active promotes cardiovascular health, focus, better sleep, and anxiety reduction!
So, what does this look like?
Action Step #4: Find the fitness that works for you. The best workout is the one you enjoy enough to keep doing consistently, so finding forms of movement you like is key. Do you dislike running, but enjoy other forms of cardio like biking or swimming? Maybe ask your parents if they could take you to the pool after school once a week, or see if they have an old bike in the garage for you to use! Do you like yoga or pilates but don’t know where to begin? Maybe pull up a YouTube workout video (there are plenty to choose from!) and try it a couple of times a week before or after school.
You can even make this a social activity! Try inviting friends for a walk or a game of pickleball after school!
Healthcare professionals suggest 60 minutes of physical activity every single day for teens. This might sound like a lot, but activities as simple as walking 20 minutes to a friend’s house, playing soccer for 30 minutes during recess, or doing a 20 minute YouTube pilates workout can help you get there.
Step 5: Goal-Set
This is where it all comes together. This is the “so what?” of the 5 Steps to Success.
Ask yourself: Where do I want to be by December?
Do you want to get an A in Calculus this period? If so, what will get you there?
Do you want to make the school tennis team? If so, what will get you there?
Do you want to stop doom-scrolling before bed? If so, what will get you there?
Let’s start off the school year right with our final Action Step. Action Step #5: Set three to fiveachievable goals for the next four months and a plan to get there. You can even write your goals down in your new school year planner so that you see them everyday!
The key here is not only setting these goals, but implementing a plan to get you there.
For example, if your goal is to get an A in Calculus, your plan can look like this:
Study and complete practice problems for 1 hour twice a week after school.
Attend office hours or extra-help sessions with my teacher weekly so that I can review any concepts I do not understand and ask specific questions.
Create a study guide and equations list at least one week prior to each exam so that I have time to review, practice, and memorize equations.
Taking the time to plan out the how behind a goal is the best way to get there!
Your Reset Doesn't Have to Be Perfect
The goal of a reset isn't perfection. It’s creating small habits that help you feel your best and support the things that matter to you.
Set your goals intentionally and realistically based on where you’re currently at, and you can re-evaluate later on! The small habits we do everyday really do add up, and progress will come over time as these habits develop.
So, give yourself time, give yourself grace, and remember that success isn't about doing everything perfectly. Success is about continuing to show up.
Here's to a strong start to the school year! ❤️
Disclosure: Some of the products recommended in this post contain affiliate links. If you purchase through one of these links, ShoreStrong may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
