From Sleep to Shots: Back-to-School Tips for Families
Published July 23, 2026
Key Takeaways
- Plan ahead for checkups and school health forms. Schedule immunizations, well-child visits, and sports physicals early so your child is ready before the school year gets busy.
- Check in on your child’s emotional well-being. Back-to-school transitions can bring stress or anxiety, so watch for changes in mood or behavior and reach out for support if needed.
- Reset routines before the first day. Gradually adjust bedtime, limit screens at night, and update any allergy or asthma plans to help your child start school healthy and rested.
Back-to-school season can bring a mix of excitement, nerves, and plenty of to-dos for families. From checking immunizations and sports physicals to easing first-day jitters and getting sleep schedules back on track, a little preparation can help keiki start the school year feeling healthy, confident and ready to learn.
Dr. Jessenia Knowles, a Hawaiʻi Pacific Health Medical Group family medicine physician based at the Waipahu Academic Health Center, visited Hawaii News Now “Sunrise” to share practical tips to help parents support a smooth transition back to class.
Schedule Checkups Early
Check that your child is up to date on age-appropriate immunizations. Immunization guidelines depend on your child’s age, so it can help to schedule an appointment with their pediatrician to confirm what’s needed, including any state or school requirements.
Now is also the ideal time to schedule well-child physicals or sports exams.
“Usually, we can do all of them at the same time if we’re given advance notice,” Dr. Knowles said.
Watch for Back-to-School Stress
Big changes like a new school year can bring up stress, anxiety, or sadness in children of all ages. Check in regularly with your children. If you notice changes in behavior that worry you, reach out to your health care provider.
“Mental health is definitely something we want to keep an eye on as kids transition back to school,” Dr. Knowles advised. “If you notice anything out of the ordinary, it’s a good idea to call their provider’s office so we can make sure that we’re checking in and helping them transition into a nice, healthy school year.”
For new students, visiting the campus beforehand or planning a social gathering with friends can help reduce nerves.
“Organizing an in-person gathering beforehand can make that first day back more fun,” Dr. Knowles said.
Update Allergy and Asthma Plans
Make sure your child’s school is informed of any environmental, food, or medication allergies your child has.
“If your child has a very severe allergic reaction to something – something that could be life-threatening – then it’s a good idea to have an allergy and anaphylaxis emergency plan on file with the school. That’s something we can do in office with you,” Dr. Knowles said.
Similarly, students with asthma should have an asthma action plan on file, detailing protocols like using an inhaler before PE, sports, or other physical activities.
Reset Sleep Routines
“We know sleep is very important for kids – for their growth, their development, their recovery – but the reality is that a lot of kids aren’t getting enough sleep for their age group,” Dr. Knowles said.
Going back to school can make it harder for some kids to get the recommended amount of sleep.
To avoid a "shock to the system," Dr. Knowles suggests parents start adjusting their child's bedtime one to two weeks before school begins, shifting it by 15-30 minutes each night.
Parents can also help by limiting phones, tablets, and TV one to two hours before bed and keeping the bedroom cool and comfortable.
With a little planning and support, families can help keiki feel more confident, rested, and ready for the year ahead.
View transcript
STEVE UYEHARA: Your children may not want to hear this, but in just a couple of weeks, they're going to be going back to school. Dr. Jesenia Knowles is a family medicine physician at Hawaiʻi Pacific Health's Waipahu Academic Health Center. Doctor, thanks for coming in. So, what should our families be thinking about with back to school right around?
DR. JESSENIA KNOWLES: Yeah, great question. So right now is a really good time to make sure that your child is up to date on all of their age-appropriate immunizations. If they're due for a well child, physical exam, or sports exam, this is a good time to contact the provider's office and make sure that that's scheduled. Usually, we can do all of them at the same time if we're given advance notice.
STEVE UYEHARA: We know mental health is such a big thing now for our children. What's your advice on that?
DR. JESSENIA KNOWLES: Mental health is definitely something that we want to keep an eye on as kids transition back to school. Sometimes going back to school can trigger some stress or increase anxiety or feelings of sadness. So, during this transition back, make sure that you're checking in with your kids, see how they're doing. Unfortunately, it's not something that we're just seeing with teens or adolescents, young adults. We're also seeing in the younger kids. If you notice anything out of the ordinary, it's a good idea to call their provider's office so that we can make sure that we're checking in and helping them transition into a nice healthy school year.
Also, if your kid is starting at a new school, it might be a good idea to preview the campus beforehand, just so that on the first day, they're a little bit more familiar with that new environment.
Another good idea is if your kids are kind of nervous about seeing all their friends again, then making sure that that first day goes smoothly. You can do something like organizing an in-person gathering beforehand just so that that first day of school is a little bit more fun.
STEVE UYEHARA: Yeah, make it more comfortable.
DR. JESSENIA KNOWLES: Yeah!
STEVE UYEHARA: What about allergies?
DR. JESSENIA KNOWLES: So if your kid has any allergies, then your school should definitely know about it. That includes environmental allergies, medication allergies, medication allergies, food allergies. And then if your child has a very severe allergic reaction to something, something that could be a life-threatening reaction to something, then it's a good idea to have an allergy and anaphylaxis emergency plan on file with the school. That's something that we can do in office with you.
Kind of on the same note is asthma. If your child has asthma, then it's also a good idea to have an asthma exacerbation plan or asthma action plan on file with the school as well. We can also do that during an office visit. For example, if your child has exercise-induced asthma, then your asthma action plan might say, you know, take your albuterol inhaler before PE, sports or physical activity.
STEVE UYEHARA: Again, this is a big one and I know a lot of parents don't think about this, but one of the struggles is trying to get your child back on a normal sleep schedule.
DR. JESSENIA KNOWLES: Yeah.
STEVE UYEHARA: How do we do that? They've been up this whole time!
DR. JESSENIA KNOWLES: Sleep, we know, is very important for kids, their growth, their development, their recovery. And the reality is that a lot of kids are not getting enough sleep for their age group. Going back to school, it can be a little bit difficult when we're talking about sleep. So, it's a good idea to start now, like, one or two weeks before school starts, kind of changing that bedtime up by 15, 30 minutes gradually each night. So, by the time they go back to school, they're adjusted to their new bedtime routine. It's not a big shock to their system.
Make sure that, you know, they're limiting screen time before bed. So, like, you know, one to two hours before bed, you want to limit phones, TVs, things like that.
And then making sure their environment is cold, like temperature adjusted, that they're comfortable, so that they're having some good restorative sleep.
STEVE UYEHARA: Yeah, and then maybe we can go to bed earlier too.
DR. JESSENIA KNOWLES: Yeah. (Laughs)
STEVE UYEHARA: That would be great. (Laughs) Dr. Jessenia Knowles, thank you.
DR. JESSENIA KNOWLES: Thank you.
STEVE UYEHARA: And thank you for helping us make this a healthier Hawaiʻi.
With the new school year just weeks away, doctors say now is the time for families to get ahead on a few key health checklists – from vaccines and sports physicals to sleep schedules and back-to-school anxiety.
Dr. Jessenia Knowles, a Hawaiʻi Pacific Health Medical Group family medicine physician based at the Waipahu Academic Health Center, says one of the first steps is making sure kids are up to date on immunizations.
This segment originally aired July 22, 2026, as part of the Hawaiʻi News Now "Sunrise" Healthier Hawaiʻi series. Watch the full broadcast here or above.
