Preschool Mornings

A parent should be wondering will my child be successful? Will your child be a responsible student when they go to school. What are you doing as a parent to teach your child to be responsible? A responsible child is a successful child. Some children are just born with the desire to get things done and to put them in order. Others never take care of anything and want or expect help with everything. Your job as a successful parent is to teach your child as much as you can to do things for themselves.

How much does your child do for themselves based on age appropriate skills? I believe this is a major concern and parents do not even realize that they are enabling their child. As parents we get caught up in the hussle bussle and it feels easy to do things our way quickly and correctly! Who does that help? Us as the parent ! Not the child! If you are a parent that wakes up gets ready and then has other little people to get ready then you need to ask yourself. ”What is my child doing for themselves?” “What can I teach my child to do in order to help my child and in the end help myself by having less responsibilities in the morning?” There are parents that wake up at 5 to leave the house at 6:30. If you are one of those parents How much time do you allow yourself to get your child ready? Do you wake up your child? Do you undress them then redress them? Do you feed them breakfast and brush their teeth? Did you know that for a three year old child he or she is perfectly capable to do all these things himself?Most parents never even give it a thought. Start teaching your child one skill at a time. First can be an alarm to wake up on their own. There are some fun alarm clocks out there. Then get dressed on their own. Breakfast can be easy for your three year old as well. Come up with a healthy breakfast idea together based on what your child likes. Teach your child about times. What time he or she should be dressed. You can even create a chart to show your child with pictures and digital clocks can be used. All of these skills are essential to be successful and I am so blown away that parents do not even allow their child to try to do things for themselves but they all complain about their morning rush. They blame the child being slow. I blame it on the parent for not teaching the child. When a parent tells me their child is not cooperating in the morning I believe the child should have consequences because that is what we get in the real world consequences. Nobody comes to our rescue and does it for us. Nope in order to achieve what we want in life we are forced to do things for ourselves. Parents are holding their children back everyday. You are not your child’s slave. Your child should not tell you what to do. Your child should not ever yell at you. Your job as a parent to a preschool child is to love them guide them and teach them to fiction as a human being in a community. Oh wait it is hard for most adults I get it but I see high functioning adults enabling their children and it scares me. A perfect achievable morning should be when the parent wakes up and starts getting ready. Be aware of when your child’s alarm should be going off and be certain he or she gets up. Reminders and encouragement are often needed and when your child is successful be certain to show your appreciation. Be certain they know you recognize how wonderful they are doing. Learn to expect this behavior from your child daily. The best time to practice new skills is the weekend. Get them practicing when you are not in a rush. Then tell them you know they can do it and after a few days your child should learn exactly what their responsibilities are. Remember I did mention that parents can use visual reminders. When it’s time to leave the house and head off to daycare ,schools and work your morning is going to be so much happier and less stressed for all. Consistency is key!