| Dear Sample,
Now that most kids have been back in school for at least a week or two, many parents are probably starting to see old habits return. The morning struggle with getting young kids ready for school and out the door might be one of those familiar routines that has returned for you. Here is what one parent shared with us regarding this continual struggle:
“Every morning, I have to compare them to stationary objects to see if they are really moving. And I feel like I’m the only one in the house concerned whatsoever with getting ready and getting everyone on the school bus. They don’t have a care in the world, lying around, falling asleep in their cereal bowls, meandering aimlessly around the house, remaining clueless about all the stuff they need to get together for school. It makes me want to scream!”
If this sounds familiar, you are not alone. Listed below are some tips for taking better care of yourself in the mornings:
Schedule some time to plan and practice when you aren’t in a hurry
This means taking the time to show your kids how to use an alarm clock and how to collect what they need the night before. You can also give them ideas for making their own breakfasts as well as tips on creating lists as prompts or reminders.
Each morning, take yourself out of the loop as much as possible
The more that you are the one working to ensure that they get ready, the less likely they will learn to get ready on by themselves.
Place almost all your emphasis on getting yourself ready
As we all know, modeling is a great teacher. You shouldn’t feel guilty placing about 98% of your energy on meeting your needs. Besides, you’ve already taught them how to meet theirs—now show them how your meet yours.
Pray for opportunities
If you approach mornings this way, your kids will have special learning opportunities: (1) they will learn that the sky will not fall if they end up going to school looking mismatched and disheveled, and (2) they will learn to take responsibility by making affordable mistakes, such as forgetting their homework.
Create a covert back-up plan
In some cases, parents find it wise to have someone secretly on call. If the kids miss the bus, this back-up adult can arrive and charge the kids for taxi service to school.
By using these tips with good training and consistency on our parts, kids can learn to take primary responsibility for getting themselves up and ready to go each and every day. Kids who learn these skills will find it far more natural to assume personal responsibility in other areas of their lives.
Our Love and Logic Solutions for Early Childhood webinar has more tips on teaching young kids how to take more responsibility and make good decisions for themselves.
Thanks for reading!
If this is a benefit, forward it to a friend. Our goal is to help as many families as possible.
Dr. Charles Fay |
