Tips and practical tools to make your morning routine easier

However, learning to mechanically perform a series of morning habits is a major challenge for many little ones. It is undoubtedly one of the first times they will have to show so much self-discipline. They will have to resign themselves to saying no to certain immediate pleasures in order to be ready on time; this is a great sacrifice for these little beings in perpetual quest for entertainment. It will also require them to sharpen their sense of organization and time management. Fortunately, Les Belles Combines has created the routine bracelet, an excellent visual aid to help your child appropriate their routine.

Here are also some tips to help your children become morning preparation champions without too much bickering.

Start small and highlight progress

The ideal is to start early and not wait until kindergarten to establish the beginnings of a routine. From an early age, your child can develop the habit of performing certain small actions to gradually integrate the steps of the morning routine. For example, they can bring their bowl to the counter every morning and put away the cereal box. They can get the hairbrush for you to do their hair. They can finish making the bed by placing their pillow, stuffed animals, and cushions. Gradually, as they get older, integrate new habits until the routine is complete. This way, when they enter kindergarten, they will only have a few new steps to add to their routine, and the load will not seem as great. You could thus decide to put only one charm on your son's routine bracelet from the age of three, then gradually add each step over time. At first, ask them to do it without expecting results, but take every opportunity to highlight their progress.

Build the routine with your child

Here, there are almost as many different routines as there are children. Simone makes her bed and gets dressed after breakfast, otherwise she would leave for school every day with a shirt stained with jam and peanut butter. Her older brothers, on the other hand, get dressed as soon as they get out of bed. Louis likes to take his time. As for Laurier, he prepares his bag and lunch box while his toast is in the toaster to have more time to play before leaving for school. In short, discuss with your child the rhythm they would like and place the charms in the order that suits them on their bracelet. Since you will have taken the trouble to ask their opinion, they will feel less like something is being imposed on them and suffering from it.

Maximize good mood, health, and well-being

Saying no to their need to play to complete a routine can seem frustrating for the child. As much as possible, a morning routine should allow us to integrate habits that will put us in a good mood, maximize our energy and well-being for the day ahead. Instead of grumbling or arguing with your children or their inability to be ready on time, offer them alternatives according to their needs. For example, you could suggest to your child who wants to play and is never ready on time to wake up 20 minutes earlier to enjoy a longer period of playful activities in the morning. For the one who struggles to get up on time, we can suggest doing a step of their routine the day before and thus gaining ten or fifteen minutes of sleep. By feeling understood in their need, your child will be more willing to comply with what follows.

To make the morning routine even easier, discover our small routine boards as well as our small sticky sequences!

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