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Learn how to create a Summer Schedule that kids (and parents) will enjoy!<\/p>\n
My daughter just finished a successful year of kindergarten. My husband and I both firmly believed that having good routines in place at home helped contribute to a great first year of \u201cbig school\u201d for our kiddo.<\/p>\n
However, once the last day of school hit, my 6-year-old figured she didn\u2019t need her at-home schedule anymore and stated (a bit too confidently), \u201cIt\u2019s summer, so I get to stay up late and watch movies tonight!\u201d Imagine her surprise when my husband and I replied, practically in unison, \u201cUmmm, no\u2026that\u2019s not how summer works.\u201d \u00a0<\/p>\n
We knew immediately that we needed a summer schedule to help guide our daughter\u2019s school-less days. We wanted to create something flexible (because summer IS a time for exploration), but still structured because our kiddo thrives when she knows what\u2019s coming next.<\/p>\n
As an education writer and consultant, I typically only work a couple days per week in the summer, and our daughter hangs out with grandparents on the days that I\u2019m in the office. Therefore, it was important that our schedule easily transfer to their homes as well. But it took some intentional planning and lots of conversation before we arrived at something that felt right for us. Here\u2019s how we created our custom schedule broken down into 5 easy steps!<\/p>\n
The first step was sitting down to ask our daughter questions about the school year and her current interests. Was there a subject she wanted to learn more about? Was there something new, like a sport or hobby, she wanted to try this summer? From asking these questions, we discovered that she developed a deep interest in geography over the school year and wanted to have time to practice drawing maps over the summer. She also told us she still loved ballet and wanted to keep her skills fresh by having time to dance each day. And she also indicated that she was interested in starting piano lessons. By just asking a few questions, we got so much information on how our daughter wanted to spend her summer, instead of us arbitrarily trying to fill it with activities that she wasn\u2019t interested in. It also helped us understand what materials to have on hand to help her do what she loves, like maps<\/a>, geography games and puzzles<\/a>, pencils<\/a>, tracing<\/a><\/strong> paper<\/a><\/strong>, dance games<\/a><\/strong>, and even a roll-up keyboard<\/a><\/strong> for her to practice between lessons.<\/p>\n Even though our daughter wouldn\u2019t need to hurry out of bed for school, we still wanted her to get ready each morning (and not stay in her pajamas until 11am\u2026because she totally would!). We put a pocket chart<\/a><\/strong> in her room listing her morning tasks: make bed, get dressed, brush hair, eat breakfast, feed the cat, brush teeth. Similarly, this chart also lists her before-bed tasks: bath, pajamas, brush hair, brush teeth, read books, lights out.<\/p>\n We also wanted her to know that she was expected to be helpful at home throughout the day. After a few conversations, we decided she could now be more helpful with laundry, specifically folding and putting away her own clothes. Then we made labels for the outside of her drawers using a simple tape label maker so she could remember where everything goes. You can also use cardstock<\/a><\/strong> and self-adhesive pockets<\/a><\/strong> for the labels.\u00a0<\/p>\n After just a few days into summer break, I noticed that my daughter gets overwhelmed by having too many options. If I told her to pick out a toy, game, or craft, she found it very hard to choose the \u201cright\u201d one. This often led to her getting pretty frustrated to the point where she didn\u2019t want to play or create at all!<\/p>\n But my husband came up with a great idea. Now, every morning before he goes to work, he picks out three toys or activities and puts them on the dining room table. Those are what our daughter can pick from to play with in the morning after breakfast.<\/p>\n We call these \u201cMorning Toys,\u201d but she actually comes back to them throughout the day. Items that have made their way into \u201cMorning Toy\u201d circulation include sticker books<\/a><\/strong>, magnet dolls<\/a><\/strong>, a marble run<\/a><\/strong> set,\u00a0slime<\/a>, clay<\/a><\/strong>, and crayons<\/a><\/strong> and coloring books<\/a><\/strong>. This technique has really helped us manage her overwhelm and it makes her feel so special knowing that her dad was thinking of her that morning. She can\u2019t wait to call and tell him what she chose to play with first!<\/p>\n We knew we had an uphill battle when our daughter announced that summer, to her, meant staying up late and watching movies! We always allowed for some screen time each day after school, so I\u2019m guessing she thought summer would be a TV free-for-all.<\/p>\n We decided to work screen time into our summer schedule by allowing her a specific time of day (afternoons after her snack) to choose something to watch, but only if she read at least two books<\/a><\/strong> already. If not, she had to head to the bookshelf before picking up the remote!<\/p>\n Only after assessing our daughter\u2019s interests, identifying our own expectations, and finding ways to help her manage her time did we create our family\u2019s summer schedule. For us, we didn\u2019t want to put specific time frames on activities (because we did want some flexibility); instead we inserted activities into MORNING, AFTERNOON, and EVENING categories. Here\u2019s what we came up with:<\/p>\n We wanted the categories to serve more as suggestions rather than hard and fast rules, so you\u2019ll notice that there are spots where we leave time to participate in outings and activities (like lessons, going to the park, or meeting up with friends). If we don\u2019t have anything planned outside of the house for the day, our daughter can choose to spend more time with her \u201cMorning Toys,\u201d dance, play outside, read, or relax.\u00a0 We also wanted the schedule to be easy to replicate at a grandparents\u2019 house (where she spends late mornings and afternoons twice per week), so there\u2019s nothing on the schedule that can\u2019t be done there.<\/p>\nAddressing Necessary Tasks and Helpfulness<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n
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<\/p>\n![\"summer](\"https:\/\/www.ssww.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/summer-schedule-ideas.jpg\")
<\/p>\nEliminating the Overwhelm<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n
\u00a0\u00a0Managing Screen Time<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n
Putting it All Together<\/u><\/strong><\/h3>\n
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