Like clockwork, my kids would come downstairs, turn the TV on, veg for at least 30 minutes, and then cry or yell when asked to get off.
It was awful. The mornings ruined everyone’s day — and it was my fault.
Over time, I learned that with a routine, your little ones feel calmer — because they know what is happening next!
And in our case, with a “no routine” morning (which ironically had become our default routine), no one knew what was happening next…and it worked for exactly no one.
Daily Routines Are Vital For Healthy Development
From a young age, we train our children when to sleep and when to eat. And with this, anticipating daily routines can become a positive feeling for kids.
In addition, as we teach routines, we often talk through the events or steps of a task, which helps model language and supports their language development!
While it may initially seem like the structure of adding in a routine will be restrictive (I hear this concern from parents sometimes), routines actually end up adding flexibility to your day.
Kids eat between 8-9, play 9-10, pick up room 10-11, etc. And with the basics of the routine set, I can then work in my top 3-5 priorities that must be done for the day. And because everyone knows the basics AND important things that need to be done and when they will happen, this helps us actually get to them.
My kids win and I win!
Yup, with routines, your kids get quality time with you, and they experience the modeling of new vocabulary and grammatical structure…and you get tasks completed! WIN-WIN!!
As we enter 2024, what daily routines are you going to put in place?
I would love to hear from you! If you have any concerns or questions about your child’s early speech development, please reply back or schedule some time on the calendar with me.
I hope you have a wonderful New Year!
Photo by Lukas Blazek on Unsplash