Let’s face it, weekday mornings can be one of the most hectic parts of the day for both kids and parents. Between brushing teeth, grabbing breakfast, and heading out the door, you’ll sometimes find a good helping of chaos. But mornings don’t have to be so helter-skelter! By instilling a few simple practices in your daily routine, you can say “Goodbye” to those stressful morning rituals and “Hello” to smooth sailing.
Make a Morning To-Do List: Write out a list of things that need to be done each morning and put the list somewhere both you and your child can see it. Remind them to refer to it every morning and check through the list with them to make sure everything was completed.
Do What You Can Ahead of Time: Each evening, determine what can be done to make the next morning easier, and then do them! Don’t hassle with picking out clothes each morning. Do it the night before. Talk to your kids about what breakfast will be the next morning, and make sure they have their backpacks and homework neatly packed away before bed time.
Start Early in the School Year: Kick your schedule into gear right at the beginning of the year to help your child get used to the flow of things. The sooner your child’s body and mind sync with the school year schedule, the better adjusted they will become!
Run Through the Schedule with Your Child: Talking about the schedule and your morning routine with your child can help you both better understand what works and what doesn’t. If your child is forced to do something they simply can’t or don’t want to do, it can add unnecessary stress to the morning. Find a happy medium with your child by talking it out.
