Let's hear it for routine!

 

Over the past few weeks  - 18 days to be exact - if your house is anything like mine, things have been a little crazy on the home front.  The holidays can bring fun and chaos. What we eat, when we sleep, or work or exercise gets a little turned upside down during this time of year. Friends and family come together creating joy and sometimes, well...you know...

Of course with school-aged kids, schedules get even more scrambled as school is out, with no rehearsals or sports practices to go to, after-school activities being cancelled for the break, and the refrain of "What are we doing today?" often heard to parents' disdain.  As much as I like all the excitement and good feelings of this time of year, I am REALLY glad to get back to the routine.  Sure, it's not sexy to like structure and predictability but let's face it, a regular schedule is good for us and our kids.

When our kids were little, we all knew that they were a little more lovable when they had a good night's sleep and ate meals at regular times. As they grew up, knowing what was expected of them and where they had to be made them more independent and confident.  Now that our kids are teenagers, regular schedules allow them to develop habits that help build success. 

I read somewhere that a person's net worth to the world is "usually determined by what remains after you subtract your bad habits from your good ones," and building a routine creates plenty of good habits. When kids create routines like packing their soccer bag the night before the game instead of in the car on the way to school, or looking over the week's anticipated assignments on Sunday evening, these are a couple of the many ways to minimize chaos and anxiety which is not good for anyone in the house! You probably know from your own experience that developing routines, whether you work from home or at an office, allows you to be more productive, and minimizes jumping randomly from one task to another.

 

We still have a couple of days left before second semester begins on Thursday, January 12th but maybe there's still time for you and your kids to find ways to embrace the beauty of routine and start the new semester off on a strong foot. Do yourself a favor and create a routine to take a look at Sequoia's calendar on the website and see what student activities, parent meetings, and upcoming minimum days and holidays are on the horizon.

 

I look forward to seeing you at the parent dialogues on January 17th or our next PTSA meeting on Tuesday, February 7th.