Back To School Routine Tips

Getting back into the school routine after the summer break is hard on everyone. Gone are the mornings of sleeping in and just going with the flow during the day. How you prepare and establish a routine now will make things easier when it’s time to go back to school.

For some, kids are back in school and starting their new year and others don’t go back until after Labor Day. Are you ready to make this transition into the new school year a smooth one? Here are some suggestions.

Sit down with your kids and go over school “rules”. These are reminders about school safety such as walking or riding the bus, behavior at school, homework etc. These can be defined a bit more once they get a routine going at school.

Set up regular wake up and going to bed time. Some kids are early risers so this won’t affect them, but it’s important to have a set bedtime to ensure they get enough sleep.

Help them with time management in the mornings. You can suggest if they’re in the bathroom, they should brush their teeth, wash their face and comb their hair. If a sibling is using the bathroom, they can get dressed.

Give kids responsibilities like packing and unpacking their knapsacks, packing their snacks and juice in their lunch box, and so forth.

Use reminders or lists to keep your kids on track. This can be posted in a prominent and central place in the house or the list can be customized for each child and posted on their wall in their rooms.

To save time in the mornings, have the kids shower or bathe the night before. Have them set out their clothes for the next morning. For older kids, they can choose two outfits in case they change their minds.

Breakfasts don’t always have to be a hot meal. Make breakfast accessible by putting breakfast food on easy to reach shelves or non-perishable items on the counter along with bowls, plates, glasses and what not.

Have them use an alarm clock instead of depending on you to wake them up. You can set it 10 minutes earlier or set the clock 10 minutes faster. Ten extra minutes can go a long way especially if something unexpected happens.

Before going back to school, celebrate! Do something fun like have a back to school party, enjoy a family outing/picnic/BBQ or a weekend getaway.

Don’t forget–while your kids are establishing a back to school routine, parents need to follow suit. A happy parent makes a happy kid.

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