Our school mornings at home are like groundhog day, however, following this routine keeps us organised and has made the mornings rush-free for me. So here is our family’s before school morning routine that I want to share with you. I started writing this post about 18 months ago, and I’m not sure why it has taken me so long to publish it, but moral of the story is that it still remains the same today!
KEY POINTS TO FOLLOW TO STAY ORGANISED
KEY POINTS TO FOLLOW TO STAY ORGANISED- Know what is going in your kid’s school lunch boxes. planning tips here.
- Have school uniforms ironed and hanging in the kid’s wardrobes, so they’re ready to go.
- If you’re not going to the gym after school drop off, shower after you wake up before the morning routine starts.
- Don’t let the kids watch TV before school.
- Pack school bags with school books, notes, sports gear the night before.
- Create a reasonable bedtime for the kids so they don’t wake up tired.
HAVE AN ORGANISED BEFORE SCHOOL MORNING ROUTINE
My school mornings are usually busy getting the kids ready. By the time we all wake up, we have about 1 hour to get ready. For the past 10 years, my kids have used a routine chart to help them remember to complete everything needed to before school. This saves my sanity and stops me from yelling and repeating myself every single day. Routine charts are available in my shop as an instant download, and there are loads of different colour options available.
We start our mornings at 6.30am. Most mornings I get up and get dressed in my gym clothes. Scotty is up a half an hour earlier and goes to the gym before he starts work. The kids eat breakfast while I make school lunches. See lunchbox ideas here.
Then they do their ‘responsibility tasks’, which in the morning is unpacking the dishwasher and putting out the rubbish. See a list of age-appropriate tasks here.
Next, they brush their teeth. It is a must that this is the next to-do on the list in the morning. I really don’t like them getting dressed then brushing their teeth as they are more than likely going to get toothpaste on their school uniform.
There have been some mornings that my kids rush brushing their teeth (goodness knows why). Now I check that they have brushed well and if not I get them to brush again. There was a stage that this was happening far too often so I created a chart (I love charts!!). I use these charts to mark off if they have brushed their teeth well, at the end of the week it is acknowledged and rewarded in something as simple as picking a movie to watch over the weekend or which board game we can play.
These ‘Brushing Teeth’ charts are an instant downloadable printable, available in 4 different colours. They are editable so you can type your child’s name onto the chart. Click here to visit shop to download.
When they are finished brushing their teeth, they wipe over the bathroom sink (have to be honest, they do sometimes forget to do this and it aggravates me).
They make sure the bathroom is left tidy, towels hung up etc. I laminated the set of 4 bathroom prints to add some colour into the bathroom, which is also a great reminder for the kids… brush your teeth, care for your skin, hang your towel and wash your hands.
Then they get dressed and make their bed. I have a perfectly imperfect rule, I don’t remake it after the kids do it, I am just happy and grateful they did it themselves. Then they brush their hair, pack their lunch into their school bag and go to school!
While the kids are getting ready for school I put the washing on the line, tidy up the lounge room and put the dirty dishes into the dishwasher. Then it’s time to fuel my body with some breakfast. I sit down for a minute and catch up on the morning news. I love the Today Show!!! Karl is so funny, gees he makes me laugh when he laughs at himself. During this time I also do the girl’s hair (sorry can’t show photos for the kid’s privacy, as they are all in school uniforms).
After I drop the kids to school I do a workout with my trainer (two-three times a week).
and then come home, shower and work on the blog. I work on the blog each weekday between 10.30-3pm.
That’s how our school mornings run. All this happens within an hour easily and without rushing. The kids don’t watch TV before school and I think this really helps to make sure they are ready on time.
