Setting a School-Year Family Schedule

For children of all ages, the transition from summer to school involves many considerations. Setting a school-year family schedule can help make things easier, because your child can rely on a consistent set of events at home. Here are some tips to set a school-year family schedule.

Get the entire family involved in creating the schedule

The school year is an adjustment for the entire family, and sitting down together to create a schedule will help everyone get on the same page. Start by writing down the daily events and tasks that will take place most often, like school drop-off and pick up, homework time, chores, and bedtime. Then, if you have extracurricular events or regular social events booked already, include those too. These can include things like swimming lessons or dinner at your child’s grandparents’ house. Revisit this schedule on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis, and try to leave room for adjustments or free time.

To help your child adjust to their new school-year routine, try to not schedule any major events or classes for them during the first few weeks or school.

Post your family schedule where everyone can see it

Keeping your family’s school-year schedule in a common area will help everyone stay on top of things. Post the schedule where everyone can see it – a magnetic whiteboard on the fridge is one example. If your child is too young to read, you can use illustrations or fun stickers to help them understand what they need to do each day.

Write down daily tasks

Even the most successful school-year family routines can experience some snags early on. One way to help your family get used to the new routine is to write or draw the daily tasks your child will need to do. Some examples of these tasks include:

Washing their face
Brushing their teeth
Combing their hair
Getting dressed
Packing their backpack
Doing their homework
Unpacking their lunch bag
Cleaning their room

Your child can feel a sense of ownership over helping you check off each item on the list. In addition, this task list can help you – you may want to prepare the school lunches or lay out your child’s clothes the day before, for example.

Start adjusting to your new schedule as early as possible

The last days of summer and the first weeks of the school year are an ideal time to practice your family’s school-year schedule. For example, if your summer morning routine meant individual family members ate breakfast as they woke up, you may want to transition to a set breakfast time where everyone eats together.

Be patient

Even if your child is excited for school, it is still a major adjustment. Give your child time to adjust, even if it takes several weeks. During this adjustment period, remain positive and supportive. Discuss your child’s feelings and listen to their concerns. You may want to ask your child’s teacher for tips on how you can make the transition period easier.

Following a predictable routine will remove one area of worry from your child’s life, allowing them to focus on other components of their new school life with greater ease.

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