Let's be honest... parenting school age children can be stressful - waking kids up early, packing lunches, doing homework, not to mention the after school sports and activities. I'm exhausted just thinking about it all! You know if we, the adults, are overwhelmed, our kids can feel that way too. In hopes to relieve some of the stress, here are a couple tips that seem to reduce some of the craziness at our house...
1. Establish ROUTINE. Kids need routine! We see this in school; that's one of the reasons teachers post their class schedule, so the student's know what to expect each day.
Take the guess work out of your child's day outside of school. Establish a morning routine and an afternoon routine. Have a set homework time and bed time. Have a family calendar and talk with your child about what events are going on throughout the week (i.e. sports practices, doctor appointments, school spirit nights, etc.), so he/she knows what to expect. Having a routine helps your child be able to focus on stuff that's important like spelling words, math facts, and who to play with at recess, etc.
2. Take the time to get ORGANIZED. This can be a big obstacle for students and adults alike. If your family is anything like mine, mornings have been ruined because a kid couldn't find her shoes, or she didn't have anything to wear. I have had mornings when I had to rush to put money in the lunch account because we didn't have time that morning to pack lunch.
On the weeks when our mornings and afternoons do run smoothly, we have put the effort on the front end of it – here are a couple things we do:
We pick out 5 outfits for the whole week on Sunday. Some students lay out their clothes the night before, and that works for them. For me, I like getting it over in 20 minutes on Sunday and then not having to worry about it the rest of the week.
We pack lunches and snacks ahead of time. I try to do any prep work I can on Sunday(i.e. dividing cheezits into 5 ziploc bags), and then we pack the lunch bag the night before. We also look at the school lunch menu and decide which days she is eating at school (because that’s really what she prefers).
We pack the backpack the night before and have it ready to go. How many times has homework been left on the kitchen table?! Also, when you are helping your kids pack their backpacks, take a moment to help them check the organization of their binders and school supplies. – Not many kids are naturally organized; it is a skill that must be taught.
I am not guaranteeing the chaos of parenting school age children will completely go away if you follow these tips. I must confess, we don’t always follow these tips in the Hoofnagle house! I can tell you from experience, when you do establish routine and organize your week, it can relieve a lot of stress!
What can it hurt to give it a try?!
1. Establish ROUTINE. Kids need routine! We see this in school; that's one of the reasons teachers post their class schedule, so the student's know what to expect each day.
Take the guess work out of your child's day outside of school. Establish a morning routine and an afternoon routine. Have a set homework time and bed time. Have a family calendar and talk with your child about what events are going on throughout the week (i.e. sports practices, doctor appointments, school spirit nights, etc.), so he/she knows what to expect. Having a routine helps your child be able to focus on stuff that's important like spelling words, math facts, and who to play with at recess, etc.
2. Take the time to get ORGANIZED. This can be a big obstacle for students and adults alike. If your family is anything like mine, mornings have been ruined because a kid couldn't find her shoes, or she didn't have anything to wear. I have had mornings when I had to rush to put money in the lunch account because we didn't have time that morning to pack lunch.
On the weeks when our mornings and afternoons do run smoothly, we have put the effort on the front end of it – here are a couple things we do:
We pick out 5 outfits for the whole week on Sunday. Some students lay out their clothes the night before, and that works for them. For me, I like getting it over in 20 minutes on Sunday and then not having to worry about it the rest of the week.
We pack lunches and snacks ahead of time. I try to do any prep work I can on Sunday(i.e. dividing cheezits into 5 ziploc bags), and then we pack the lunch bag the night before. We also look at the school lunch menu and decide which days she is eating at school (because that’s really what she prefers).
We pack the backpack the night before and have it ready to go. How many times has homework been left on the kitchen table?! Also, when you are helping your kids pack their backpacks, take a moment to help them check the organization of their binders and school supplies. – Not many kids are naturally organized; it is a skill that must be taught.
I am not guaranteeing the chaos of parenting school age children will completely go away if you follow these tips. I must confess, we don’t always follow these tips in the Hoofnagle house! I can tell you from experience, when you do establish routine and organize your week, it can relieve a lot of stress!
What can it hurt to give it a try?!