Video:Tips for Setting a Back to School Morning Routine

Transcript:Tips for Setting a Back to School Morning Routine

Hi I'm Katherine Lee from About.com, and this is Sarah Welch from GetButtonedUp.com.  Today she's here to talk about morning routines for back to school.

Importance of Back to School Morning Routines

So Katherine, routines really are the building blocks to organized living.  One of the most important things parents can do is instill basic routines that get your kid in the habit of  being organized, and morning routines are absolutely essential.  Now they don't have to be complicated.  The best morning routine really only has four parts and is very, very simple, but it sets them up for a productive day and, because we incorporate bed-making into it, when your child comes home from school and -- a lot of children do homework in their bedrooms and at desks -- it sets up their room in a way that is conducive to focus. So they're not walking into clutter. Exactly.  

Basic Elements of Back to School Morning Routines

So the four basic components to an organized morning routine are: a consistent wake-up time, and breakfast, then after breakfast changing out of PJs into your clothes for the day, and then immediately, before walking to the bathroom to go brush teeth, taking the dirty clothes and putting them in the hamper.  And then going to brush your teeth, and finally ending it by making your bed.  Children as young as 4 years old can make beds.  It's not going to be beautiful, it's not going to be perfect, but they absolutely can and should at a young age get into the habit of just pulling up the duvet covers, fluffing the pillow.  It is not complicated, and it's a very simple thing that sets up a very good habit for life. 

Track Success of Back to School Morning Routines

So after beds are made, one of the things that is really crucial to making this stick is to put together a little chart and track progress.  Because even though this is a very simple routine, the child needs this to be second nature, and the way to do that is to track progress over weeks and celebrate consistency and wins. That's brilliant, so Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. Exactly.  This is a free printable you can download on GetButtonedUp.com, and you find it in our "tools and downloads" section, and basically you put this on your fridge or in a public spot, and every day they complete their routine, you get to have a little celebration, and then after a week of successfully doing it all, maybe they get a special activity that you do with them, something to really cement the routine in.

That's a wonderful tip, thank you so much.  For more, go to About.com.