The school year is just around the corner and having your child be able to get up and complete simple tasks in the morning will be a life saver once that hectic time of year starts back.
Start now getting your child in the habit of doing a few things for him or herself and your mornings will be a breeze…. Well, maybe not a breeze but breezier.. Here are some tips.
Kill the media – We have a no media in the morning policy. If you feel like your child would be motivated by having TV time once all tasks are complete, consider that as an option. Just be aware that not all shows are going to sync up with your “out the door” time and could cause a battle of epic proportions if having to leave in the middle of their favorite cartoon. Other rewards to consider:
Playing with Pet
Listening to music
Reading
Coloring
Have clothes picked out the night before, maybe even pick out 5 outfits for the week for them to choose from. This helps them feel like they have options, which can be a big deal. Every morning, kids get up, and get dressed before even coming downstairs.
I like the idea of making a hot breakfast for my kids every morning but doing that every day is not realistic in our house. Have easy to make breakfast items on hand for them to pop in the toaster or cereal and fruit for them to prepare or get themselves. If you’re a “cook a hot breakfast every morning” kind of family, more power to ya’! Maybe you can offer us some tips on making that happen. I have in the past made up an extra batch of pancakes on the “good” mornings or on Sundays – kind of a good compromise. They get a “homemade” breakfast but can re-heat them themselves.
If you think remembering all of their morning chores will be a problem. Make a checklist on a poster board, magnetic board or whiteboard. You can post this in a couple of places around the house as a reminder. If your little ones can’t read, draw pictures. If one of their tasks is to make the bed, draw a picture of a bed. Brush teeth, draw a toothbrush…
Make sure to cheer them on throughout their tasks. Tell them you love the outfit they picked out, that they did a great job on their pony tail and if you think they need a little reminding to stay on task, see what they’ve done so far and say “Wow, what a great job you’re doing, only 1 item left on your list….”
You can get out of the house in the mornings without nagging, yelling and tears (yours and theirs) we promise, but developing and adhering to predictable routines is key. It may take a little trial and error to get your timing right but in no time, you can be on your way to some less stressful mornings and more independent kiddos!
photo credit: <a href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/mufidahkassalias/10519508175/”>Mufidah Kassalias</a> via <a href=”http://photopin.com”>photopin</a> <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/”>cc</a>
