So, the kids are back in school and you’re trying to re-group.
Good for you! I feel like this time of year can be a fresh start for everyone. I know I’ve been working on our new schedule for a few weeks now but don’t have it pinned down yet. Once I do, I want to provide my kiddos enough support that they can walk through their morning routine with some level of independence. Ha! I KNOW our kids really do need hand holding. And that’s okay. I love to provide that, as long as it’s helping them toward the bigger goal of self-confidence and independence. And I’ve got a few tricks I think are really going to help with that this year.
1. This Unique Printable
Structure and routine are critical for my foster kiddos’ but as much as they rely on those routines they fight them as well! They feel secure knowing what the next step is going to be but they distract themselves from getting there! Gosh, I love them, but getting everyone out the door for school is a monumental feat! That’s why I’m excited for each of my children to start their day with one of these this year.
I’m not showing the entire page for copyright reasons, but It’s one of the printable pages from the Back-to-School 2016-17 planner included in the Parenting Super Bundle. Because it’s a printable planner, I’m able to use as little or as much of it as I like. There is also an afternoon checklist which I’ll introduce to my children once we have the morning checklist down. And, instead of writing in each morning task, I’m going to have my kiddos draw a picture representing each task. Images are powerful cues – especially for my children – and by having them draw it I hope to instill their routine a little bit deeper. I know there will be a lot of hand-holding as they learn how to navigate this page, but that’s okay! It’s one more step to a successful morning and life-long skills.
Here’s part of the afternoon checklist I’ll be introducing later; it’s excellent! There’s a place further down titled “Don’t Forget!” Again, I’m not showing the entire page for copyright reasons.
Then, there are a few pages I’ll be printing for my own personal use, like this one! I just love the large spaces to jot down lunch ideas. And, with a box for each food group it makes it easy to keep the lunches healthy and balanced (partial image only).
2. These Visual Routines
For extra support, and a strong visual reminder, I’m hanging one of these in each room involving their morning routine. There will be one in the bedroom, the bathroom, the dining room, etc. I’m hoping this will either cut down on distractions, or help them re-group when they get off-task. Because, every time my kiddos move from one part of the routine to another they become distracted. The reason these visual routines are perfect, is because the characters can be placed in any order you need them to be! So, it’s easy to tailor the charts for your family’s needs. These are also included in the Parenting Super Bundle. Again, I’ve only included partial images for copyright reasons.
3. These Customizable Chore Cards
Over the summer, I tried teaching each child a new skill such as folding or sweeping, but it was hit or miss, and I didn’t have a good system. So, when the Parenting Super Bundle came out this week and I found these customizable chore cards inside was thrilled! I love the graphics and ease of use.
This is just one example of the card options. They range from making your bed to taking out the trash! Each card is easy to read, has a cute image and can be edited. Yep! That’s the genius part, I can go in and type exactly what I want on each card before printing. I plan on laminating these and paper clipping one chore card to each child’s after school checklist. As each kiddo moves through their after school routine and gets to the chore part, they can bring their card to me and we can work on the chore together. Once they’ve mastered it, I can replace it with a new chore card.
4. These other Resources
The printables I’m using as my kids get back into their school routine are just three of the 80 resources in the Parenting Super bundle (including over 1,750 printable pages!). I’ve ignored a number of bundles in the past, but this one has been invaluable. As a foster parent, I am HIGHLY recommending this one. The pintables alone have
given me relief as I implement a new school year schedule, but more than that the eCourses by Child therapists on Emotion Coaching as well as Anxiety, and the book “Self-Care for Foster and Adoptive families” written by a foster mom have already been invaluable for my family. I was worried that because there were so many good things inside I would be overwhelmed (I HATE mental clutter!), but I wasn’t. the navigation system and layout are very well done and finding what you want is extremely simple. I encourage you to check it out here. If you’ve got more questions or are still unsure, take a look at this cute video I made about the Parenting Super Bundle. It’s actually being crazily discounted right now ( it’s $29.99 for over $1,850 in materials)! The Anxiety course alone is worth $125 and TODAY is the LAST DAY its available. So, click here and see if it’s a good fit for your family.
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