ITS A NEW YEAR 2015!!! I know you have set your routines and goals for this year. Why not establish a routine for your child that will set them up for long term success? Routine Charts are an effective and helpful way to encourage discipline within your child's daily life, while supporting their development in the home environment. Although as parents we have busy schedules, it is possible to nurture your child's natural desire to take on task for themselves. Why not let them?! The intention for Routine Charts is to be supportive to your child's capabilities by setting appropriate responsibility that are realistic, motivating, and interactive. Take advantage of daily routines by allowing your child to accomplishing purposeful work through their self care task.

Here are some ideas for Routine Charts at home:

Printable Daily Routine by kidtokid.com

D.I.Y Routine Chart by The Almost Perfectionist Blog

Printable  by livinglocurto.com

D.I.Y for toddlers by

3 Key Tips for Results: 

1. Stay consistent! Remember to encourage your little ones to accomplish personal task on their own. Guide them, do not do it for them!
2. Keep your child's growing phases in mind. As they get older add a bit more responsibility. The goal is for children to master the tasks on the Routine Chart, not to overwhelm them which can easily lead to disinterest.
3. If you have multiple age children keep in mind to make a chart that meets each child's specific needs. For Ex: Toddlers are capable of accomplishing less steps then older children. Which means, you would have to create two separate charts. Yay! 

Our Experience 

Well, we would find ourselves reminding our son what to do every morning and evening like... take a shower, brush his teeth, clean up etc (not fun). Finally after realizing that repeating ourselves caused unnecessary stress and became draining and not helpful for all of us, I looked for options and came across the idea of implementing a Routine Chart at home. 

Creating this chart took time but our was focused on the long term rewards. We want to make sure that we were setting him up for success in anyway we could throughout his daily life. It has been magic ever sense its been on the wall with duck tape and all :). Now my husband and I  rarely having to remind our son what he has to do for his morning and night routines. The most important practice is that when he's forgets what to do next he can go to the chart and keep himself organized and focused. When he needs guidance we remind him to check the chart to see what he needs to do next for himself. So far this chart has been a great tool to support his independence, memory, responsibility, and self confidence. Especially as he gets older the more responsibilities and more things to remember. 

Share your rewarding experiences or challenges towards implementing a Routine Chart at Home. If you don't have a Routine Chart yet and have questions feel free to drop a line!  

With love,

Rhina E.