Organizing home paperwork, family calendars, and school work doesn’t happen without effort. We don’t start out from birth organizing we need to learn how! Teaching your kids how to keep these things organized is a great first step at an organized life.
We are not born know how to be organized. We learn how to organize as we go, hopefully! Organizing home paperwork, weekly calendars, and school work doesn’t happen on its own. Your family needs to work and learn together to get organized.
You can make it easier on yourself though. Get everyone to buy in to becoming an organized family. This means your kids too! The earlier you are introduced to organizational systems to more likely you will develop great organizing habits for the rest of your life!
Children may not know how to be organized, but it is something they want. Even toddlers like organized orderly days. Anyone who has witnessed the tornado of a toddler moving through a room may find this hard to believe, but it is true! The smallest children find comfort in having a day planned out. When you have an organized family schedule your toddler knows what to expect each day. A toddler and preschooler have very little control over their day when they know what will happen next they find it comforting, just like adults.
Planners for Small Children
Want to start your child off early? There are great products available that allow you to show your child what you will be doing that day, or for that week. You can use pictures to help them get a clear idea. For example, after lunch we go to the library. On your “planner” for the day follow a picture of lunch with a picture of your local library. This is also a great way to introduce before and after concepts to little ones.
Planners for Elementary and Beyond
When your child progress to reading and writing and is ready for a “big kid” planner there are a number to choose from. Let them be a part of the selection process. The more they love it the more they use it! There are kid friendly planners on the market that will likely be more successful than buying your standard leather bound boring book. Kids are attracted to bright colors, stickers, puzzles, and bookmarks. You will want them to carry it with them so look for something light and small to fit into their backpack. They will be hard on them so choose something that looks like it can take a beating!
Is your child already a tech wizard? Kids are getting introduced earlier and earlier to computers and the helpful programs they offer us. Maybe they see you using an electronic planner. If it makes sense for your family you can choose from starter PDAs or electric organizers designed just for kids, or online scheduling programs available.
Whatever you choose you want it to be easy for them to use. Setting them up with an online calendar that they only have access to at very specific times when you are there to monitor, or they have computer access may not be the easiest way to develop a consistent habit. Every child and family is different the most important thing is choosing what you think will be the most successful at getting your child started organizing home paperwork and schedules.
Develop the Habit
It takes adults about a month of consistently doing something to develop a habit. Don’t expect your child to take to their planner without your help. Make becoming an organized family a fun activity you can share. When they get started sit down with your child and record family birthdays and celebrations. Let them decorate and personalize their planner.
Help them find the best way to record due dates for big projects, sports practices, or dance recitals. The more they use their planner, the more helpful they will find it. Find times to encourage your child to check their planner. It can become part of your morning routine, look over what is on the schedule for the day. Or after dinner review what you have coming up for the next day! What works best for you will depend on your family’s routine. Don’t have a routine? This is a good time to start!
Make it Fun
Reward your child’s diligence. When they add activities, homework, and other important dates to their planners offer encouragement. Stickers or stamps are a great incentive for many children. They can use them to make their planners even more fun!
You don’t want being organized to be associated with negative memories, so try and keep developing this habit upbeat and fun!
The Benefits
It is a sad truth that kid’s lives and schedules are becoming stressful at younger and younger ages. By teaching them to keep a planner you are helping them to claim control and reduce that stress! Your child will feel more relaxed knowing just when projects are due and activities are scheduled for.
Keeping a great record of homework and projects will also help reduce lost and forgotten homework, which can improve your child’s grades and make them a better student!
Teaching your children about organizing home paperwork and schedules at a young age helps your child become an organized adult. Depart important life skills on your kids by encouraging organization from an early age.
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