Create a Morning Routine for School Days

Are you the type of mom who’s constantly rushing around in the morning, stressed out, trying to get yourself and your kids ready, only to end up leaving the house behind schedule anyways?

That’s the type of mom I have been for the last 11 years.

When I worked outside of the home, there were days I would drop the kids off at school and head to work realizing I had forgotten to eat breakfast.  Even when I wasn’t working, I couldn’t seem to get everything together in the mornings.  And taking care of myself was never a priority.

Last year every morning was a mad rush to get myself and the kids ready.  Most days I would be ready to head out the door, only to realize Lil Sis didn’t even have her socks on yet.  Nearly every morning we would get to the school a few minutes after the bell rang, and I would park behind all those other parents who hadn’t gotten it together that morning either.  At least I wasn’t the only one, right?

But not this year.  This year I’m not the mom pulling up to the school in her pajama pants, reminding her kid to stop at the office for a late slip.  This year this mom got it together. And I owe it all to my morning routine for school days. 

If your ready to get rid of the morning chaos follow my steps for creating your own perfect morning routine.

Step 1: Make A List of Your Morning Tasks

Before you can start planning out your morning routine, you need to figure out what all you need to accomplish before you drop the kids off at school.  Take some time to write out all your regular morning tasks.  Keep the list close by in the morning as you rush to get everything done so you can add in all the things that you probably didn’t think of.

Getting the Kids Ready

What are all the things that need to be done in the mornings to get your kids out the door?  Write everything down, even the little things.  Is there anything that always seems to be forgotten until the last minute?  Is there something one of the kids always forgets about, like putting on socks?  Write it all down.

Once the kid’s list is ready, separate it into two lists, theirs and yours.  Can they make their own breakfast?  Will they need you to remind them when it’s time to get dressed?  Put anything they can do by themselves on their list and the things they will need your help with on yours and theirs. 

Getting Yourself Ready

Now focus on the things you need to do to get yourself ready for the morning school run.   

Last year I didn’t do much to get myself ready before taking the kids to school.  Since I was coming back home after dropping them off, I didn’t need to worry about me until I was kid free.  Now that I work at home, and like to take advantage of the 6 kid-free hours I have for work time, I have to prioritize getting myself ready too. 

If you’re rushing off to work after dropping the kids off, then you obviously need to get yourself ready for the day before you leave too.  But if you’re going back home, you can decide what you want to do before you go out in public and what could wait until you get back home and are kid free.  Could you just throw your hair in a messy ponytail until you have a bit more time to spend on it?

Morning Chores

Are there any morning chores that need to be done?

Since I had nowhere to be after the kids were at school last year, I wouldn’t even bother worrying about getting the breakfast dishes in the sink until I was back home.  Now, getting the house tidied up before we leave is more of a priority to me.  When I get home from my morning school walk, I want to get right to work, and those dishes on the table would be too distracting for me.

Even if you don’t work from home, you likely don’t want to come home from your work day to have to clean up the mess of the morning.  When you’re making your list of morning tasks, make sure you include anything that needs to be done around the house before you leave too. 

Step 2: Shorten Your Morning List

Once your list of morning tasks is complete, you’re likely going to realize why your mornings are so stressful.  You have a lot to get done in a short amount of time.  It’s time to cut that list down.

I realized years ago that trying to get lunches made while getting kids ready in the morning was too stressful.  So, I rearranged the fridge so that I could fit two lunch bags on the top shelf of the door and now I make lunches the night before.  Every night before I sit down to relax, I take a few minutes to prep anything that I can for the next morning

Look at all your morning tasks and figure out what things could be done the night before instead.  Prep the coffee maker and set out a couple of clean mugs.  Have everyone pick out their outfits for the next day before bed.  Make sure you check the weather forecast first too, so you don’t have to worry about any last-minute outfit changes as your getting ready to head out the door. 

To shorten your list, even more, look for things you have been doing that your kids could easily do for themselves.  Go ahead, pass on some of your morning chores to your kids too.  They probably have more time than you in the mornings so make tidying up the dishes one of their morning tasks. 

Step 3: Time Out Your Morning Tasks

Now that you have a shorter list of your morning tasks, you’re probably starting to plan out what order you will do everything in.  Slow down, we aren’t quite ready for that yet.  Before you create your morning routine, you need to figure out how long each task will take. 

When I created my morning routine, I stuck with the usual chaos of running around trying to get everything done on time for a few days, while I recorded how long each thing took me.  After 3 days I had a good idea of how much time I would need for each morning task. 

Take your morning task list (and the kids list too) and start keeping track of how long each task takes.  Use your phone’s timer or just write down the time you start and end each task.  Do this for a few days, then use the longest time each task took.  It will be easier to create your schedule in 5-minute intervals, so round the times up to 5, 10 or 15 minutes. 

Step 4: Schedule Out Your Morning Routines

Create the Kid’s Routines

Starting out by planning the kid’s morning routine’s first is easier since you will have to plan your routine around the things they need your help with. 

First, add up the times for all their tasks so you know how long it will take them to get through their morning routine.  Now add an extra 10 minutes to that time, because you know some days they will go slower than planned. 

Decide when you want them to do their routine.  Do you want them to get right to it as soon as they wake up or do you prefer to let them lounge for a bit so you can enjoy your coffee before you get started?  Are they allowed some screen time before they start getting ready or will that be a reward for once they have everything on their list done?

My kids’ morning routine starts at 7:30 when I have breakfast ready for them.  If they are awake before that they are allowed to play on the computer or watch their YouTube videos.  Since they are good about pausing their videos to get ready, having some screen time before starting their morning routine works for us.  If getting your kids away from the screens will be a battle, consider banning screen time in the mornings or using it as a reward for being ready on time.

Next figure out the easiest order for their routine.  Should they get dressed first or should they wait until after breakfast in case they spill something?  Will they fight with each other if they are brushing their teeth at the same time?  Maybe they one should get dressed while the other is brushing their teeth and hair so they aren’t in the bathroom together. 

Once you have their routine planned out, figure out how they will be following it.  Are you going to remind them of what they are supposed to be doing until it becomes a habit?  Can you give them the written routine to follow on their own?

For young kids, a morning checklist is a great way to get them into a routine independently.  This worked well for Big Sis, and after a few weeks of checking each thing off her morning checklist, she had the routine down.  Put the checklist somewhere they will see it while they are getting ready, like on the fridge or taped to the bathroom wall. 

Creating your routine

Now that you have the kid’s routines planned out, it’s time to figure out yours. 

Start by writing out the time in 5-minute intervals.  First, check your kids’ routines and schedule in all the things you will need to do to help them.  Now start putting in all the things you need to do to get yourself ready, and anything that you want to get done around the house too. If you have a lot of things to help your kids with, your tasks to get yourself ready may need to be scattered throughout your morning wherever they will fit. 

For me, I was able to find time to get dressed and wash my face before making the kids breakfast but had to wait to brush my teeth until afterward.  Since Big Sis is picked up for school a half an hour before I have to leave to take Lil Sis to school, I prioritize getting her ready first and wait to do my hair done until after she has left. 

Do you need to wake up earlier?

I know you don’t want to hear this, but if you find that all the things on your morning task list aren’t fitting into your schedule, you may need to start waking up earlier.  I know it sucks, but having a calm morning will be worth it. 

Last year I would happily sleep until 7:30, just in time to hear The Husband leaving for work before I got up and started getting the kids ready.  This year that doesn’t work for me.  With the extra tasks I have in the mornings now, if I want to have time to drink a coffee and scroll through Facebook before getting started, I have to get up at 6:00. 

While I have never been much of a morning person, this quiet time to myself in the mornings has been worth the earlier wake-up. 

Now that we have adjusted to our new morning routine, and it has become a habit for us, our mornings are chaos-free.  There’s no more worrying that I have forgotten something as we are heading out the door.  There’s no more stress because we’re already late and Lil Sis doesn’t even have her socks on.  I get her to school before the bell rings every day, and I get back home feeling relaxed and able to start my day. 

Creating a morning routine for school days was just what we needed to make our mornings more enjoyable. 

Do you follow a morning routine or schedule to keep things calm in your house?  What other tips do you have to keep the school day mornings stress-free?

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