Loosely scripted routines for daily family life have been a sanity saver in summers past but I have let a lot of things slide recently; my beloved routines are one of them.
Routines are my biggest ally in the battle again the screens.
I have fretted about screens and screen time since my oldest first picked up the remote many many years ago. Today’s earlier-than-normal awakening brought with it confidence that I need to clearly re-communicate expectations and be firm with TV time, iPad, and phone access. I need to reset my expectations for the younger children especially because they have different needs and different rules than the big in our home. Their brains are so sensitive to the good stimulation in our natural world, and (the far less-good) unnatural stimulation from the electronics.
Neurologists are now reporting actual evidence of actual evolutionary changes occurring in the brains and skulls of young people in response to the dramatic increase in time spent on devices.
In terms of actual amount of screen time, two hours a days seems generous to me, restrictive to the little ones, and impossible for the older ones. Yet whenever we tighten the rules on screens we are rewarded and their imaginations are unlocked. By making a schedule for your day and week, the child can see when they will have their beloved screens, but also know when they are expected to do other things.
Making your own summer schedule isn’t hard. Start with your ideal bedtime and meal times. Add in quiet time/naps, activity/craft, errands, exercise (swimming, walks etc. based on your weather), free time & screen time. Sketch it all out on paper and if your spouse is around ask for feedback/buy in. It only works when all the adults are on the same team. Don’t plan every moment, but rather chunks of 2-3 hours.
If possible add in a weekly excursion: community pool, library, park, museum, zoo, play date. This way your child knows if they want to do something extra, there is room in the weekly schedule for it. Also consider including at the bottom some ideas for fun when they get bored: build something, write something, dream of something, sing something, explore something, make something for someone else. Lastly, build in some fun or relaxation for you too every day and try not to fill that time with chores. For more on making that practically happen read this post from a few years ago (here).
Once you have it all well formed, draw it up on a big poster board or some art paper and post it where it is visible. When the kids get bored, they can reference the schedule and see that lunch is soon, or they can swim after nap time. It helps them build their patience and ability to wait for the fun. One word of caution Don’t be a slave to your schedule, but rather use it as scaffolding for your day. Be flexible and have fun. It is your summer vacation too after all!
Thanks for stopping by!
PS - check out my Instagram (here) for our summer schedule this year
PPS- also check out these 10 tips (here) for summer success including a throw back to what our schedule looked like when the big ones were little.
