Are your school mornings a mad dash? We are already three weeks in to the new school term and nothing has changed here – no matter what, we are always running late. Sometimes we make it just in time but often we end up being late and it’s getting embarrassing given we live next door to our school. I had been trying to think of ways to organise our mornings better when Anya suggested a kids morning routine chart. She said it would help her to know what order she has to do things and when.
I decided to give her suggestion a try and I finally made one last week. It’s a very simple DIY kids morning routine chart that outlines exactly what she has to do and when. We’ve only been using it for a week but the chart has helped.
One of the best things about it for me is that I don’t feel like a drill sergeant anymore! I’m no longer telling her to brush her teeth 20 times before she actually does it. Or if I left the room, I used to come back and find she had emptied her lego box and started building a mammoth house which was impossible to tear her away from. Now she looks at the chart and she knows exactly what to do when. And the chart is also helping her to be more independent.
We also built in a little treat called ‘golden time’ which falls in the middle of the morning routine. If the first part of the routine is done in time then she gets 5 minutes playtime. This has encouraged her (more than I imagined) to try and get things done quickly.
For us, it was always the first part of the morning that went so leisurely which meant that in the last 5-10 minutes before leaving, we were running around like headless chickens to get out the door on time. Anya doesn’t always manage to get her ‘golden time’ but the incentive is there for her to try. 
I’ve made the kids morning routine chart out of regular printer paper, spelling out the morning routine. I used a teardrop shape because it looks pretty and used some washi tape to add colour but also to keep my walls from peeling! And I intentionally used a stand out colour for golden time so that it can’t be missed or forgotten. You can of course make any kind of chart – it takes just minutes and it could take some of the stress out of the mad morning dash!
Do you have any tips for taking the stress out of the morning madness?
My boys make sure I’m up, then they tell me to get dressed by a certain time and finally they give me a five minute warning—they love getting to school a half an hour early to play. It’s me not wanting to leave the kitchen in the state that it is…I just have to let go and clean up afterwards.
Can I borrow them, please? Please, please please!
Love this idea, we are pretty rushed on a morning but I try and get everyone to sit and eat breakfast together and I pack the lunchbox and schoolbag from the night before and get the uniform ready so we can try and be as relaxed as possible. Adore this creative visual prompt idea though x
I think it’s fab to be able to have breakfast together – but we never manage it here. Crazy chaos no matter what! But that’s why this chart – helping not just A but me also 🙂
What a clever idea Nomita! I need this for Olivia, not sure if too young. Isabelle is ok in the mornings, but we struggle with the little one… Mornings are definitely my favourite part of the day, but we all have to manage, don’t we? x
Thank you! I am not a morning person and I don’t think A is either that’s why we need all the help we can get to get ready on time. So far, the chart is working well xx