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Most parents these days are blown away by the demands on their child’s time. When you were a kid, you went to school and you came home. Maybe you played a sport or suffered through piano lessons once a week, but for the most part afternoons were whiled away with friends until dinner time, and then it was on to homework, a bath, and bed. Today it seems like kids are going from sunup until midnight, with a schedule jam-packed with schooling, extracurricular activities galore (sometimes two or more a day), stacks of homework that rivaled your college curriculum, and very little time left over for friends, sleep, or anything else. Play-dates, something you never even heard of as a kid, now have to be scheduled far in advance so they fit into the mix. So when it comes to managing your child’s schedule you may find yourself at something of a loss; after all, it’s not like you signed up to be a personal assistant when you decided to start a family. If you’re struggling to get your child’s crazy timeline under control, here are a few tips to make the calendar manageable.
The best place to start is by paring it down. Your child may be keen to pursue all sorts of interests, but if he’s not hitting the hay until long after sundown and the lack of sleep is starting to affect everyone, then it’s definitely time to take the upper hand and limit his activities. You don’t have to stifle your child’s creativity or drive to do this, either. Simply allow him to choose one or two interests at a time and then give him the option to switch it up at the start of the new school year. This way he has the ability to try everything he wants and still get to bed at a decent hour. It may be hard to say no, but for his health and your sanity you need to put your foot down.
Unfortunately, you may not have a lot of leeway when it comes to the homework situation. It seems that most schools have decided busywork is the best way to prepare kids for their eventual college education. However, you may be able to help your child get through his homework a bit quicker with several possible strategies. One is to have him sign up for a study hall (if they are offered) so that he can get a head start during the school day. Another is to enroll him in after-school tutoring or even bring a tutor to your home on a regular basis. Both of these resources can hopefully help him to slog through his pile of homework more expediently. Of course, you could also sit with him each night to offer a helping hand and ensure that half of his time isn’t spent texting or tweeting with friends.
Finally, you need to find a way to track everything. You can keep a daily calendar for your child, give him his own date book, or populate glass dry erase boards with a monthly forecast. You can even use apps for your smart phone or tablet to track the schedule and give you reminder alerts. Find the tools and techniques that work best for you and it will make the job of managing your child’s schedule that much easier.
I have noticed that it is becoming increasingly more difficult to manage my own schedule now. Granted I know that our child is only 17 months and so there will alot more of the burden placed on us when he is older.
Something tells me that when he is older he very active. These are great suggestions for me and any parent to remember.
I think we all tend to over commit ourselves. It’s important to find that balance no matter what the age.
Great ideas! We also live by the calendar. If it isn’t on the calendar it isn’t happening! I hate last minute surprises.
I think its important for children to stick to one or two interests at a time (per season, maybe) so they can really have time for everything else- homework, family, sleep, etc. Also I love to keep track of things with a family calendar!
A centralized family calendar is a must for us!
Great suggestions! Minimizing commitments/activities is crucial around here! Also, I don’t know what I would do without my calendar!
Thanks for sharing!
Very nice suggestions and well written. The calendar always worked best when my kids were at home to let each of know how to schedule our time.