Creating a structure for your homeschool day with one or more small children presents it’s own very unique challenges. It’s a constant and delicate dance that needs to fluctuate depending on most relevant needs, but still provide enough consistency for the children to thrive in.
Personally, I was not used to being able to control the whole day and truly having a say over each aspect. With multiple nap times, dad sometimes out of the country, trying to schedule enough time for all the things we felt were important it was easy to feel like a day or two had gotten away from me. I know firsthand how frustrating it is to be struggling to find a schedule that fits every single body in the home.
Finding a routine that works for the whole family took a lot of trial and error but it’s been one of the most beneficial time investments I’ve been able to make. This post will give you a few quick wins to help develop some predictability to help you (and those kiddos) calm the day. There’s also a free download for the Daily Routine Cards that I used to help my kiddos visualize routines down near the end of this post.
why daily routine is important
A daily routine is so important for preschool-age kids because it helps them feel safe and secure in their environment. At this little age, children thrive on consistency—they love knowing what to expect next. Having a predictable routine also builds their confidence and independence, as they start to recognize patterns and take ownership of small tasks.
Setting up routines will make life easier for you too, creating smoother transitions between activities and fewer meltdowns. If everybody knows that after reading is lunch, and as soon as lunch is cleaned up it’ll be nap time, there are less random requests and expectations. It doesn’t even have to be this rigid—just a simple flow to your day that balances learning, play, and rest is all you need.
Related Post: How We Homeschool
creating and tweaking your own daily routine at home
Here are five suggestions that have helped our family.
1. Observation.
You knew this was coming if you’ve read a few of my other posts. To properly assess your situation you’ve got to take a step back and get an idea of the whole picture. Take note of the natural rhythms in your day and start with those for step two.
2. Anchor.
Use the natural transitions, down times, meal times, and even the weather to solidify the rest of your day around. Build your routine based off of these natural occurrences since they are less like to maneuver.
3. Visuals.
Visuals. Help your children get a feel for your new schedule as you implement the new ideas by showing them visually. Print off these Daily Rhythm Cards or draw out your own and line them up. Help your child work through the schedule and refer back to it throughout the day. Before you know it they’ll feel empowered to consult the visual schedule on their own.
4. Flexibility.
Continue to adjust the routine as it suits you and your family’s needs. I made XYZ cards but there are actually a couple empty spots for you to fill them in as well. Move things around and try them out a day or two to see what helps everybody feel their best.
5. Rhythms.
A last little tip is to create multiple routines. We have different rhythms for when we have clubs and classes, are home all day, or have a field trip. This provides some semblance of predictability for my kids as well and I can see that they appreciate it. If you’ve got church twice a week or just a routine for grocery trips, try to keep it consistent to provide enough structure for them.
tailoring your daily schedule to your family
Here’s a super quick run down of a typical homeschool day around here:
- Wash up and get dressed.
- Breakfast with Bible reading and/or meditation for the day.
- Outdoor exercise (jumping on the trampoline, bike ride, nature hike, or beach run).
- Wash up and have lunch.
- Chapter book and nap.
- Quiet reading and small snack.
- Outdoor activity (science experiment, painting, sensory kit, etc.)
- Showers and dinner.
With the overall rhythm remaining the same often times our outdoor time is traded for a playdate or a trip to the library. The flow of the day intentionally remains the same, though. If we’ve got an appointment or a field trip planned they get plugged in around our big anchors — which for us is meals and naps mostly. You set the tone for your kiddos day so take care of the big rocks and then fill in where you can from there. Be sure to consider things like interests and everyone’s energy levels, you got this.
Much like anything else that is worth the effort, routine building will require time and patience. If your kiddos are younger or work best with visuals I encourage you to try some sort of visual schedule in your home.
I made the Daily Routine Cards for my own little ones before they could tell time and it was a surprisingly useful resource — which is why I am sharing it with you now. Share your own approaches to setting routines and building predictability into your at-home schedule in the comments below.
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