Creating A Successful Morning Routine

Going to sleep early and getting a good nights rest is crucial to having a successful morning. It makes it easier to get up in the morning if you are fully rested. This can be done by turning off devices and having downtime before bed without any electronics. It is important to set up a structure for bedtime that is the same every night with before bed routines.  Also, sleeping in a room that doesn’t have extra light leads to more restful sleep.

Visuals can be very helpful in setting up a routine. These can include anything from visual calendars, charts and checklists.  You might want to also demonstrate expected and appropriate behaviors such as showing the proper way to brush teeth or pack a backpack.

Give a lot of rewards and praise for when routines are completed correctly! You want to teach the skills and reward for small improvements. You might even use bigger rewards in the beginning in order to see movement in this area. This could be done as a point or sticker chart system while other kids respond well to immediate rewards such as a special breakfast being awarded if a child is ready by a certain time, being able to choose the radio station on the way to school, or getting to use technology on the way to school.

Having certain tasks completed the night before will simplify your morning routine by being prepared. You can make sure backpacks are already packed and homework is already completed, in the right folder, and ready to go so that you have less to do in the morning. Even tasks that cannot be completed the night before can be planned out such as what to wear or bring for lunch so that fewer decisions need to be made in the morning.

Kids will need more support in the beginning while they are learning skills and getting in new habits! While setting up a new routine and getting back into the school year can be very challenging, by sticking with it and being consistent with expectations and rewards you will see a lot of progress and have success!