So I made these guides for moms with school-aged children, to provide a little relief.
If you’re anything like me, you have a lot to do and a small window of opportunity to do. Am I right? As busy women, we all have moments that we wish that there was something that we can do to give our kids a self guided nudge and stay off of those darn screens all the time. We can’t always be there to tell them exactly what to do, especially when our focus is on making sure dinner is ready on time, taking a business call and ironing clothes for school, right? Well, I have something to help you remedy that! I have been doing this with my son since he was able to read and we have long established directives on screen time. (Does your kid get upset when you tell them they can’t have their phone, computer, tablet or television too? I’m talking full on melt down. Rolls eyes. Ugh.)
There is a solution now!
My husband and I have really been making an effort to get this kid off the screen and outside and using his imagination. He takes Tae Kwon Do and is in soccer, so you would think that that’s enough to keep him off the devices-um no. So, the three of us sat down and thought out these Kids Guides. There is one one for Spring, Winter, Summer and Fall. We thought about how much time should be given to each activity on the list and what was fair. He even had to sign his copy-so he knew that it was a binding contract that he agreed to follow (talk about an exercise in responsibility) or he would be docked or something would be taken away. He has to complete each task before he is granted his time and that is if it had not been docked the day before, and while you still have to ensure each task was done, it only takes a couple weeks for them to sink into the rhythm and you can easily ask them if they are done with their list! MOMMY WIN!
It does get better with time…
It has been an interesting journey to watch him, he gets up and diligently works towards his goal of getting everything on the Guide done and sometimes if he gets done early enough, I will grant him a little extra time. Depending on how the day is going. The List as we call it in our home, is more than just a list, it teaches responsibility-chores are incorporated, it teaches mindfulness-they have to ask what you need help with, they learn that they should start what they finish and they learn how to prioritize, as it doesn’t really matter what order it goes in, just that it all has to be done before they can get to the screen.
I hope these Kids Guides are as helpful to your family as they are to mine! Post them in their room, on the fridge or in your family command center. You can add times to the school list, if it makes it easier, but just have fun with it. It bring them out of the scroll hole, and helps get more familial interaction!
Click Each Link To Download and Print Your Guides Today For A Better Start Tomorrow!
