With back to school right around the corner, I thought I would share some tips I'm going to use to help my daughter Katie get ready for the new school year:
1.Setting simple morning and evening routines for the school week. I'll redo my daughter's chore chart by adding a basic checklist of the things she is responsible for on school days. Then, as these become routine habits for her, I will build on them by adjusting her chart over time. This way I can help my daughter learn more about responsibility without overwhelming her.
2.Breaking the summer sleep-in/stay-up late routine. I plan on easing into this over the next few weeks by adjusting my daughter's bedtime and wakeup time a few minutes everyday until the desired times are reached. I am starting this now with the goal of having this schedule firmly established prior to her first day of school.
3.Conquering clothing catastrophes and conflicts. All clothing for the school day, down to undies, socks and shoes, will be laid out each night before bedtime. My daughter will have input regarding selection, but no changes will be allowed once decided. This will, hopefully, help keep the process of my daughter getting herself dressed for school as drama-free as possible.
One of my daughter's chores will be getting her backpack ready the night before and placing it on the kitchen counter. In the morning, I will put her lunch next to her backpack along with my keys and anything else required for the day. This will hopefully eliminate crazed last-minute scavenger hunts prior to leaving for school.
5.Setting a time for homework. My daughter will be home from school by 3pm. So I plan on giving her time to get changed, have a snack and play. We'll start homework at 4:30pm. When finished, she can then do a few little chores like help set the dinner table. After dinner, she can enjoy free time, or be ready for soccer practice. This way, we can smoothly transition into the bed time routine come 8pm.
In essence, with a little planning regarding some basic routines for the school week, we can help ensure that we start, and end, our day on the right note.
Tip: To add items to a chore chart, just click the edit icon located in the upper left corner of your chart once it's opened.
Click here to sign up for a service to create multiple chore and behavior charts for your children.
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