The final straw for us, one word, mornings. There isn't anything I detest more than chaotic, unprepared, stress filled mornings! I don't believe that is the way to begin a day, and more importantly no way to begin a child's day before sending them off for school. We were having a particularly chaotic Monday morning which began with no one setting their alarm, the children waking a half hour after their necessary wake up time, and snowballed from there. Tears, shouting, forgotten school clothes, it was UGLY!!
I made up my mind even with all of our wonderful intentions and our "systems" they just simply were not working. The children KNOW they are supposed to set alarm clocks before bed, but it was not happening. They KNOW they need to lay out clothes before bed, but only some were following this fully. We needed to find something to help us to more clearly define our systems already in place.
I decided to make a run to staples for laminating ($1.99 per page). I filled out some organizational charts and felt it was worth the shot! I had three for each of my school age children. Morning, After School, Night. They were each filled with what I felt were the essentials.
Morning Routine looks like this:
Put on school/PE clothes, Brush teeth, Brush Hair
Quietly make my bed
Come downstairs and eat breakfast
Clean up my spot and any mess I made
Get my hair done
Put my lunch bag on my backpack
Make sure I have everything I need for the day
Read quietly and wait until it is time to leave
Seems simple enough, but for some reason we have struggled with this EVERY morning! Until now. I am no longer the constant nagging and reminding mother. I no longer stress myself out trying to get my children to get ready in the morning. All I say now is did you get your list. SIMPLE! Outlined, written, no reason to say "oh I forgot"
Thus far the blessed lists have been absolutely fantastic! They have helped the ones that need further help and they have re-enforced our routine for the ones that are already organized.
After my children have completed their set of lists for the morning they bring it to me all filled out, I go through it and make sure they did indeed accomplish these things and they will earn a star. We have decided to keep things simple and give them money for the stars I had been thinking that a trip to the library, or they could earn special outings, but I wanted something more tangible where those that were following and earning the stars could feel justly compensated.
Here is the wonderful Link from SuttonGrace Blogspot Charts
Take a look and see if this may be something you could implement into your family to help keep everyone on task and organized while fostering independence and a sense of accomplishment, AND keeping your sanity!!!
I am going to include our set of reminders for After School and for Evening to help get you thinking what your list may be.
After School:
Come in quietly
Put hat, gloves, scarf inside sleeve of coat
Hang coat/backpack, put lunch bag on counter, wash hands
Give mom or dad take home folder
Eat my snack quietly at table
Finish homework and ask for help if needed
Have mom or dad check my homework
Put my homework in my folder and in my backpack
Evening Routine:
Eat Dinner, clean up after myself
Make sure my backpack is packed with everything I may need for tomorrow
Have school/PE/dance/sports clothes, library books, ready for tomorrow
Set my alarm clock to wake up tomorrow
Put on my pajamas, brush, floss, rinse my teeth
Make sure my room is clean and I put back everything in it's place
Say my prayers before bed
Turn off lights and go to sleep
We have had a few stragglers here and there, but I kept it simple for them. They did not earn their star for that day and I encouraged them to try again for next time. I will keep you posted on how we continue with this. I am greatly encouraged by our initial success and I plan on continuing to emphasize the importance and use of our lists.
