Top Tips for De-Stressing Term Time Routines

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De-Stressing Term Time Routines

Do you ever wish the school routine was a little less demanding, easier to cope with and didn’t involve so many “Don’t forgets…” and “Remember to…”? Here are some tips for making the all-important stress points of the school week a little easier.

Before School

Tip 1: Crucial 10 Minutes

Try getting up 10 minutes earlier. This may give you a chance to grab a cup of tea or coffee, have a shower and get dressed in less of a rush than usual, and should give you just enough time to gather your thoughts and make sure you have everything.

Tip 2: Have a Checklist

Create a written or verbal checklist for your child’s school morning routine. A checklist could include: eating breakfast, getting dressed, brushing teeth and hair, packing lunch and water bottle, putting on shoes and coat. A plan of their weekly school routine is handy too so that you know when school library books are due back, which day is swimming or games and so on.

Tip 3: Use Devices

Set reminders on your phone for special tasks such as remembering to give your child signed permission slips or leaving early for a school club. Think about an alarm for children who struggle to wake up. Set a timer for tasks such as 15 minutes to eat breakfast or 5 minutes for showering, so that you can keep your children on schedule.

Night Before

Tip 1: Get Homework Done

Beware your child’s pleas to do homework after dinner. They can be too tired and often end up in bed later than is ideal or struggling to switch off and go to sleep. Try to give your child 30 minutes to wind down after school, but then it’s homework time!

Tip 2: Do Preparation with your Child Before Bed

Put dirty items in the laundry and lay out the remainder for the next day. Check all homework and sports kit are bagged up for the next morning. Make showers/baths part of the night time routine, rather than obstacles to overcome in the morning. Having a really good chat with your child before bed will settle them more easily – it helps them to offload their minds.

Tip 3: Build in Quiet Time

Children normally need at least an hour of unwind time after dinner, if they’re to go to bed and to sleep quickly. So, try to set half an hour (minimum) of quiet activity such as reading or drawing before bedtime.

Tip 4: Do your Prep

Make packed lunches, sort snacks, fill in permission slips, ensure you’ve written in your child’s homework or reading diary, if they have these.

At Weekends

Tip 1: Don’t Over Schedule

Having too much scheduled activity at the weekend often means children don’t get to replenish their energy before Monday. Try to make sure there’s chill time for everyone.

Tip 2: Get the Homework Done Part 2

Don’t let homework hang over the heads of the family all weekend. Try dividing the work into two parts and schedule one just after breakfast on both Saturday and Sunday.

Tip 3: Plan the Schedule

Take time to chat about the week ahead at dinner on Sunday evening. Check emails from the school to see what’s happening in the coming week, and take notes of extra sport/ music practices, Book Club books, late finishes, early starts etc on your calendar.