Tips to Have Happier School Mornings
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Most of us are not morning people in our house. The biggest one being me, MOM! As much as I’d love to get up early before the kids, I can never seem to make it happen…but, it’s something I’m working on! Since my kids have started school, our mornings can often be rough. Most days we’re rushing around getting ready, filling our bellies and getting everything packed up.
But, then there were those magical days where things weren’t so stressed and I wasn’t running around like a crazy person yelling at my kids all morning to get dressed…brush teeth…eat their breakfast. I soon realized the big difference in those two types of mornings. Read on to find out how a little prepping can really make a huge difference in your busy mornings!
I’ve put together a list of tips to help make your busy mornings a little less stressful and get you out the door on time. When I take the time to prep and keep these tips in mind I’ve found that IT IS possible to have easier and happier school mornings, so here goes:
The night before:
In the Morning:
- Lay Out Clothes (Even Mom!) If you do nothing else, do this part. Seriously. The easier it is for them to get up and get dressed on their own, the better, and fewer morning meltdowns over “I can’t find my shirt.”
- Gather Homework & Charge Devices Get the papers put in the backpacks before bed and plug in those computers! Maybe make a dedicated spot to keep the cords plugged in to make it easy.
- Library Books. Set a reminder for the night before library day so you can track down those books ahead of time. It can often be tough to track those suckers down once they’re mixed in with all of the other books. Having a dedicated bin for them to live in once read, is very helpful.
- Prep Lunch. Why do i DESPISE this one so much? I seriously have to force myself to do this every night. But, when it’s done, it makes the biggest difference. Bento Lunch boxes are awesome for organizing everything and are easy for kids to see everything in their lunch at once.
- Mom Tip: if you prep fruit and veggies each week, it helps SO much! When I make time to do this, assembling the lunch goes much faster. These containers are so nice.
- Prep any breakfast you can. Anything your kids can grab themselves = a win. Have fruit cut up for easy grabbing or have cereal and bowls ready on the counter for easy grabbing. Something as simple as letting them pour milk into their cereal builds independence.
Again, these are things that work for me and my family. They are things I keep in mind each morning when getting everyone ready.
- Don’t Let Your Mood Set The Tone. It’s not the kid’s fault that I got up later than I wanted to and now I have to rush. I know that when I am rushed in the morning, it has a direct effect on how I react to the kids. When I can get myself up and get my own needs out of the way, I can be present for when they’re up and needing help in the morning. Sometimes I can’t shake my mood and I have to “fake it.” Everyone is happier and less stressed.
- Give Kids Time to Wake Up. My older daughter has an easier time getting right to her morning tasks when she wakes up. But, my younger daughter likes to have some time to “wake up”. It takes her more time to get going. She likes to have some time in bed to drink her chocolate milk and just lay awake before starting her day. I let her have some time doing this before I start nudging her to get going, which does much happier when I’m sensitive to her needs.
- Easy Morning Checklists. My older daughter can easily make a list on her own, but my youngest needs some help remembering all of the morning tasks. Using one of these charts helps the kids stay on track and work through the list in their own order. My kids love to do things themselves and feel so proud when they accomplish all of their tasks.
- Add Some Morning Fun. If you spend any time in the car on the way to school, play some fun music on your drive. Or, if you homeschool, blast some of your family’s favorite positive tunes while you tackle your morning tasks.
My kids have been loving this! If the morning has been stressed, it quickly changes it up so they walk into school feeling good and happy. And of course, make sure they get a hug and an “I love you”, especially when the morning has been rough…even on the busiest morning, make time!
Maybe you have your rhythm during that school week and your family runs like clockwork. But, maybe like me, you don’t have it all together. I’m not an expert by any means, but I do know that when I take the time to incorporate these things into our routine, our family has a much smoother morning. If I could only follow my own advice every day!
And, this doesn’t just apply to school. We use these things when we have an early morning to be anywhere so that we can ensure we’ll leave on time.
If I could only follow my own advice every day! But when I stick to even a few of these habits, everything feels lighter. Less yelling. Less rushing. More connection.
