It can be challenging to find your groove as you settle back into school routines.
If you haven’t already, we’d suggest a family meeting.
Check out our family meeting tips in more detail here .
Then try out these Five Fabulous Tips for Finding Your After School Groove!
Keep The Calendar In Mind
After school activities can start off as a fun way to interact with others but can also lead to stress and busyness. Keep your after school commitments as efficient as possible. Prioritize what fits best into your family and doesn’t contribute to stress for you or your children.
Routines Rock!
Routines are very helpful to maintain a stress free home. At your family meeting decide how after school time is going to look. What are your expectations?
A routine could include any or all of the following:
- maintaining a tidy front hall (bags, shoes, outwear etc. placed in their homes)
- homework
- chores
- music practice
- free time
- supper prep
- lunch making for the next day
Once you have decided on a routine create a checklist and put it in a page protector. Have kids use a dry erase marker to check things off as they are completed. Once the routine becomes old hat perhaps the checklist will no longer be needed. Until it does, it keeps kids on track and makes expectations clear. Think about what the consequences will be if the expectations within the routine aren’t followed.
Include Time For Mentoring
Mentoring is very important. Not only does it give you time to help your child understand good study skills but it also gives you some quality one-on-one time together.
Some topics you could discuss in a mentoring session with your child could include:
- ways to organize school work, home work and projects
- ideas to help stop procrastination in its tracks
Relax and Reconnect
Making dinner is very important no matter how stressful life becomes. Studies have shown that children who help make and eat meals with the family tend to do better in school, and handle peer pressure more positively. So, take the time to plan out and shop for easy and delicious meals that everyone in your family will enjoy. Then once the food is made, get the whole family around the table to visit and talk about their day. This is a great time for each family member to share one hard thing about their day and 1 good thing about their day. Everyone can be heard and it is a great way to start off conversations if you are struggling with what to talk about.
Prepare For The Following Morning
Preparing for the following day helps make the mornings go smoothly.
Some things you could do before bed and as part of the after-school routine include:
- laying out clothing
- reviewing homework
- signing permission forms
- packing backpack,
- pre-packing all non-perishable foods for lunch
- set the table for breakfast
Using all 5 of these tips will help your whole family get into good habits and find their after school grove!
September is the perfect time for a fresh start. Check out our website. We offer a complimentary initial consultation. We can come and talk about how to get you and your family to a level playing field. We don’t want you to feel like you are just barely keeping your head above water. We have strategies that work and a caring team that comes with no judgement.