10 Tips for Easy Morning Routines for School

We all know how stressful morning routines for school can be. Let’s be real…as parents, it’s an achievement just to get yourself dressed and ready for the day, let alone the kids.

 

Starting the day in a stressed mental state only hurts yourself and the kids.  As parents, it’s up to us to create a routine that will help establish peaceful mornings.  That, friends, is why I’m here to help.

In order to have a stress-free morning with kids, it is important to establish both bedtime and morning routines for school. Let’s take a look at the following tips to have better mornings before school.

 

 

Bedtime Routines for Kids

 

1.  Get a good nights sleep:

Easier said than done, I know.  We noticed a big change in my daughter’s morning routines for school when we made sure she had no screen time 2 hours before bed.

If if they are not tired, have them lay in bed to rest their body and mind.  Kids who get enough sleep have better mental health, behavior, performance in school, and immune systems.

The image below shows just how much kids should sleep.

If you have a kindergartner at home, the goal is 10-13 hours.  Therefore, if you have to wake him/her up by 7:00am, he should be in bed by no later than 9pm.

 

 

 

2.  Lay clothes out the night before: 

 Planning outfits in advance is easy with organizers for kids like the one below.

This eliminates the endless time spent staring into the closet, or arguing with your child, trying to decide what to wear for the day.

With a daily clothing organizer, your child can simply grab the outfit of the day, and get dressed independently.

 

 

 

3.  Pack the Bookbag the Night Before:  

There is so much to do in the morning, so why not get some of it done the night before.

We like to make sure homework, school forms, books, and tech items are packed up the night before.  That way, the backpacks are zipped and ready to grab before walking out the door.

 

4.  Charge your devices:

While getting dinner ready, have your child’s chromebooks, phones, ipods, kids’ tablets, or watches charging.  This way, when packing up the book bag in advance, you can get these items packed up, too.

Rushing around the house looking for chargers, or panicking because items are not charged, is not a good way to start your morning routines for school.

5.  Set an alarm for the kids:

Use an amazon Echo, otherwise known as Alexa, to set a morning alarm for your child.  I like to make sure everyone is awake at least an hour before leaving for school.

You can also set a timer, and play bedtime meditation or music to help calm your child as they fall asleep.

 

 

 

6.  Take Showers or Baths at Night:

When possible, make showers and bath time part of your kid’s bedtime routine.

Bathroom time in the morning is like premium real estate; keep it open so everyone can have their time!

If you have daughters, you may struggle with brushing and styling their hair in the morning.  You’re not alone; I had that problem for a couple years, too.  Until, I figured out a little trick; use a good conditioner and braid her hair while yet.  If you follow me on Instagram Stories, you know that I’m a big supporter of holistic products.

I have recently made the switch to Maple Holistic Silk18 Conditioner for myself and my daughter, and love it!  Our morning routines for school are so much easier if I can take out her braid, run the brush through it once or twice, and be done!

 

Morning Routines for School

1.   Pre-Portioned Lunches: 

Packing school lunches doesn’t have to be a daunting task during your morning routines for school.

Instead of scrambling to pull random foods from the pantry, take one day a week to plan ahead.  Prepackage the snacks into resealable storage bags.  This way, you can quickly grab for a snack bag, and toss it into the lunch box.

 

Rather than using plastic ziploc bags that are harmful to our environment, I now use these LunchSkins reusable bags and recyclable paper bags.  In the mornings, I simply grab the pre-filled bags from the fridge and cupboard, then toss it into the lunch box.  Quick and easy tips for morning routines are what we all want!

 

 

 

2.   Morning Gratitude Affirmations: 

As you may know, to avoid teacher burnout, I began practicing meditation and shifting my mindset to focus on finding the positive a couple years ago.

It has been life changing!

Every morning, I like to start my day off with morning gratitude affirmations.  This puts me in a great mood as we are going through our morning routines for school.

Since this has been so life changing for me, I am going to begin setting 5-10 minutes every morning to have my daughters practice this before school.  For my youngest daughter, we can do the daily gratitude affirmations while we are waiting for the bus.

 

 

3.  Reinforce Self-Care:

Use printable sticker charts to reinforce self-care in the mornings, such as brushing your teeth, brushing your hair, getting dressed, etc.  The more they can do on their own, the less you have to stress about!

 

 

4.  A Quick and Easy Breakfast:  

Getting kids to eat breakfast before they walk out the door for school is so important, yet so challenging.

We are trying to cut sugary cereals, cereal bars, and processed food for breakfast. And, since Skyler has an intolerance to dairy, we are slowly eliminating the yogurt cups.

Thankfully, we found a quick and easy breakfast that works for our family – smoothies in the Vitamix, green tea, and avocado toast.

• smoothies
• avocado toast
• protein bars for kids
• yogurt cups (non-dairy is delicious, too)

 

 

We’ve had our Vitamix for about a year now, and use it almost everyday!  I just throw in some pre-washed fruit, a bit of almond milk, spinach, and some  organic agave to make the perfect breakfast smoothies.

Since the Vitamix is so powerful, it blends in no time.  Better yet, I can prep my avocado toast while the smoothie is blending; there’s no need to tend to it like other blenders I’ve had.

 

Conclusion

There are steps you can take in the evenings and mornings in order to have stress-free morning routines for school.  A little bit of planning and effort can create a calm, peaceful, morning for yourself and your kids.

 

Before you go, here are a few blog posts you may enjoy:

100 Things to Do At Home With Kids

21 Best Educational Apps for Kids

5 Fun Science Kits for Kids

What to Pack for Kids Lunch

 

 

Morning Routines for School