Video: Conquer the School Carpool

Follow these tips to keep it drama-free and safe. Put down the poolside cocktail and get the clipboard. Get your fellow carpooling parents together to plan the important stuff like the route, the schedule and rules that both parents and kids must follow, like being on time. Create a group email or group text for easy communication, and have an emergency contact list in case of, well, an emergency. Assign the same day each week or an entire week to one parent to avoid scheduling snafus. Make sure there's enough seats in everyone's car for all the kids in the carpool. There should only be one child per seat, no doubling up, even if it's a short ride. Children's shorter than four feet nine inches must ride in booster seats according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's recommendations. Check out the BubbleBum and mifold boosters. Both of these space savers are portable and compact. Only kids 13 years and older may ride in the front passenger seat. Everyone else must ride in the backseat. Keep the car in park until everyone is buckled up. Have kids exit and enter the car from the curbside, and have older children wait on the curb to ensure the younger ones get out safely. Especially in the beginning of the school year, remind kids during morning drop-off who's picking them up after school. Glance into the backseat to make sure no backpacks or lunches or kids have been left behind. Keep your cool as you ease back into carpool duty this fall, and remember, it won't last forever. Pretty soon, your kids will be asking to drive themselves to school. (upbeat music)