Mornings can be a hassle. Getting myself and 3 kids ready for our day is pretty much never smooth-going, but having my kids do their Morning 5 has helped.
The Morning 5 is the basic ‘care-for-yourself’ things that I want my kids to do every day of their life. I thought about what I would want them to do when they stay at someone else’s home, what they should do when they are in college, and what should be habit for them to do as adults:
- Make your bed.
- Get dressed.
- Take care of dirty/clean laundry.
- Clean up bedroom.
- Brush teeth, wash face, fix hair.
We had to spend time practicing these steps, and they’re still not habit– yet; but I know that if this is our family’s expectation all the years they are in this house, it will become second nature to them eventually.
When the kids were younger I made some alterations to help make things a little easier:
- Make your bed. *They were able to do this because I did NOT use a sheet, only their comforter, and I tucked it in around the foot and most of the sides of the bed. That way they were only “making” the head-end of the bed, and the rest stayed put.
- Get dressed. *With help when they needed it, but it’s suprising how young a child can fully dress themselves. Laying out clothes for them helps with this step.
- Take care of dirty/clean laundry. *I taped pictures of clothing on the dresser drawers so they could put away their clean clothes. It doesn’t matter if they put them in messy! A few wrinkles are worth this life-long habit.
- Clean up bedroom. *This can be difficult if your kids have too many toys. I’ll be writing about Trade-Out Toys soon, which will help.
- Brush teeth, wash face. *Always with supervision until you know they are getting those pearly-whites clean!
After my kids were able to do the Morning 5 without help, I also added a requirement: they had to do their 5 before they could have breakfast. This has helped them speed up the process, because they can’t wait to eat each morning– except for my youngest, the laid-back easy-going kid. He doesn’t do his 5 quick, but he does get them done; baby steps…
March 16th, 2009 at 15:07
I love the pictures-on-the-dresser idea!
April 14th, 2009 at 23:25
[...] I have the kids check their piles each morning, and they put their clothes away themselves. I had to work to establish this routine, but my kids have put their own laundry away since they were 2 years old so it was mostly training them to do it every morning as part of their Morning Five. [...]
November 2nd, 2009 at 16:54
[...] teach good habits to my kids, things that will help them have a better and easier life, like the Morning 5, and things that will grow them spiritually, like taking an active part in our morning family [...]