5 Tips for Creating a Routine for Kids

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Back to school season is upon us. Kids have been sleeping in late, given more freedoms, there has probably been a limited amount of structure and this is all going to take some work and attention to reinstate the school routine.

Seems like when my kids were in public school we would go through this process at the end of each summer no matter what grade they were going into.

Even so, now that we homeschool year-round, we are more lax in the summer and it is time to start getting back into that school year routine.

creating routine for kids

5 Tips for Creating a School Routine for Kids

1. Start Early– meaning don’t just decide a few days before school starts to begin working on getting your schedule back in order. Start about 2 weeks out getting in bed 10-15 minutes earlier each night until your kiddos are getting in bed at their school night bedtime. It is recommended that preschoolers get about 10-12 hours of sleep a day. Kids 7-12 years old need 10-11 hours of sleep a day. And lastly 12-18 year olds require only 8-10 hours of sleep with in a day. Start adjusting bedtimes accordingly.

2. Get Up Before Them– moms and dads, this is vital. If your day is running behind it sets a bad tone for everyone. Get up and start your day before you ever have to wake anyone up.

3. Do What You Can The Night Before– sign notebooks and papers and pack bags and even lunches, if possible, the night before. This will help everyone. You can even pick out clothes the night before. I have even heard of parents letting their kids sleep in their school clothes so they are already dressed when they wake up.

4. Create a Command Center– this is awesome for keeping everything all in one place that is for the school day. Those backpacks once packed will hangout here over night. Kids’ shoes, umbrellas, equipment for athletics, etc. This is also where the key are. Have you any idea how many time we misplace keys in our house when they are not returned to their hook? All of these things need to be in the command center. Even the family calendar displayed so there are no surprises.

5. Fuel Up on Food– our kids do NOT like to eat right when they get up… except the teenager. Since we homeschool it is easier to adjust breakfast time according to everyone’s personality and readiness, but when you can’t miss a school bell, being timely with breakfast is important. If you know your little one is going to take a long time to eat or is not going to want to eat right when he or she gets up, take this into account when you’re deciding on everyone’s wake time. Kids need fuel for the day.

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One thing I have loved for years is having easy choices on hand that I can pop in the oven and make a hot breakfast. These require no meal prepping and make the breakfast routine so much easier.

jimmy dean breakfast ideas

There are many different variations for breakfast and I found these at Walmart. They had tons to choose from.

And then when the kids come home from school I guarantee you the first words out of their mouth will be something along the lines of being hungry. My boys always were. Even homeschooling we stop for snacks and refueling.

An easy option is to have these State Fair corn dogs on hand. All of my boys could eat corn dogs three times a day if I let them. These are perfect for after school time. Pair them with some fresh fruit like orange and apple slices.

state fair corn dog snack

I love that these corn dogs come in individually wrapped packages. This is super convenient. I can recycle the box and toss the corn dogs in the freezer simply. Found these at Walmart too.

So tell me, what are your best back to school routine tips? And, how do you handle hungry bellies after school? Share how you #fuelforschool in the comments!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Jimmy DeanĀ®. The opinions and text are all mine.