Morning Routines | 31 Days of Back to School

When heading back to school one of the most dreaded tasks I hear everyone mention are those lovely morning routines.

Not only is there the whole issue of adjusting a free spirited summer schedule but there is also the wonderful battle of getting everything done to get out the door on time.

As a natural born night owl myself, I completely sympathize with the “magnetic pillow syndrome”. You know ~ where your head and the pillow are connected by some unknown comfortable universal pull. Yeah, I have the same relationship with my pillow too.

Once I had kids I knew I needed to find solutions that would work for all of us. Over the years here’s what we’ve used:

Preschool:

These are the years when the kids were definitely better at the morning routines than me. So we worked together:

• If I wasn’t up

the kids were allowed to wake me up ~ by all means necessary. A few mornings of being jumped on helped cure my magnetic pillow syndrome.

• In the kitchen

things were at a “kid friendly” level. Breakfast items like bowls & spoons, lunch items like healthy snacks and lunchboxes encouraged the kids to take on doing their own tasks in the morning

• Getting out the door

having a spot where everything we needed was waiting for us in the morning helped. I also began putting things in the car that needed to go with us when I found them (like the day before) to alleviate the need for remembering when I wasn’t at my mental best.

Elementary School:

These years were interesting. In the beginning I still had excited students, toward the end however, they clearly became my children … that darn pillow!

• If I wasn’t up

this is where the alarm clock post was born.

• In the kitchen

building on the preschool years, more items were allocated as kid-friendly and more independence could be practiced

• Getting out the door

Paperwork. The nemesis of all parents with school aged children. While I know we all try and get to it the night it comes in, the real world situation usually looks a bit more like a parent driving to the school ~ one hand on the steering wheel and one hand signing a paper their student is balancing on a textbook. Keep a few supplies in the car for times like this :: pen, post-it notes, cash stash … and my all time favorite ~ the tardy pad.

Middle School & High School

These are the years where independence is fiercely fought for ~ or against. Work your magic as a seasoned adult to help your student come up with their own systems (in other words, when they come up with an idea you’ve spent years telling them would work better ~ smile and say “now why didn’t I think of that?“)

• Mornings:

A few years back Real Simple Magazine published a morning routines article where they recommended using music in the morning. I love this concept ~ especially for tweens & teens.

allow the kids to pick the music

consider it a twist on musical chairs :: musical tasks ~ work with them to determine how many songs it takes them to eat breakfast, make their lunch, get dressed and/or shower. This helps to instill the passage of time without having to look at a clock throughout the morning and will help them begin to structure a routine that fits their style. Best part? Without the parental nagging!

• In the kitchen

Negotiate before school is back in session what is pre-approved for breakfast & lunch items. Then be sure to stock the pantry accordingly. It’s important to note :: if you don’t provide the items you don’t want them consuming you’ll have less of a battle regarding nutrition.

• Getting out the door

Be sure to refer to the above mentioned ideas, then build on them. Teaching your student how to predict what will be necessary to walk out the door :: once.

We use the surface of the door we exit the house from as a type of bulletin board. Our door happens to be metal, so magnetic clips are used to hold things like signed papers, homework, “Don’t forget” notes & a checklist of “did you do this” items. Allocating a few minutes to glance over the lists and grab the needed items helped us shave off at least 15 minutes and multiple returns to the driveway for forgotten items.

No matter what tips, techniques, tricks or skillsets you capatilize on ~ the most important thing is to find morning routines that work for your family.

I’d love to hear what morning routines have worked for you over the years or what tips you plan to try this back to school season … hop on over to The Mental Clutter Coach Facebook Page and join the conversation or leave a comment below!

Got anything to say? Go ahead and leave a comment!

Name (required)

Mail (will not be published) (required)

Website

Comment

XHTML: You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>

Notify me of follow-up comments by email.

Notify me of new posts by email.