Mornings are always fun - said no parent ever! But a little prep can make everyone's life a bit easier at this busy time of day. Here are Nana's Top 5 Tips for the Morning Routine, hope they help! xx
- By implementing some easy routines at home, your child will know exactly what to expect and what to do every weekday morning and evening. It helps to encourage the same patterns of behaviour every morning - for example: get up, have breakfast, brush teeth and put on clothes/uniform. Limiting play or screen time until after they have finished getting ready helps minimise any distractions.
- Layout clothes. Encouraging your child to lay out their clothes/uniform the night before not only saves precious time in the morning but also helps you realise if you need to dig out another jumper from the depths of the drawers or emergency dry a clean pair of shorts!
- Breakfast! In the run up to starting nursery or school, it can help to begin to give breakfast soon after your child wakes up (probably earlier than they are used to); similar to your schedule when term starts. Most children not at nursery and at weekends don’t have breakfast until later, perhaps around 8.30-9am. When they have to start eating a lot earlier (and quickly) to get to school on time, they aren’t hungry and tend not to eat much. It is obviously ideal if children can come to school with a full tummy. Most schools offer breakfast clubs if this suits your timetable better - you can read more about what they offer here.
- Prepare the night before. Routines and preparation are good for us as parents too! Get bags packed up the night before, water bottles filled and prep any snacks you can so they are ready to go. The less you have to think about in the morning the better.
- Plan for the week. Some super-organised families have told us they pack the car boot on Sunday evening, with all the equipment that the children will need for the forthcoming week - organisational goals right there!
