The K5 - elementary education for parents

Most families are very busy. Parents work.  Kids have tons of activities and after-school programs.  School performances. And you might try to sneak in a night out, if you’re lucky.  All of these details can create a lot of confusion, frustration and anger around the house.

I started asking a few friends what they do to keep everything organized. Most just shrugged their shoulders and said they just “deal” and hope everyone makes it to the end of the week not having missed a game or dentist appointment.  But my friends Brad and Tam have an interesting trick they use.  They both work full time and have two boys, 7 and 9.  Both boys play different sports and have different activity schedules.

Every Sunday evening, before the week starts, they all get together to find out who is doing what for the week.  Each member of the family brings a list of things:  soccer game, late night at work, birthday party, doctor’s appointment, night out, the works.  They figure out who needs what, when and where for the week and they write it down on a dry erase board, broken up into five days:  Monday –Friday.  This system isn’t perfect, but it seems to work for them.  Here’s how I’d do it:

1. Everyone in the family writes down what they need to do for the week. If your child is old enough to write, they can make a list. If not, they can draw a picture of an activity they need to do. If they are too young to remember or know their schedule, remind them, but have them make the picture or write it down on their own.
2. Each family member shares what they’re doing that week.  One member of the family writes all of these activities on the dry erase board. You can use different colors for different members of the family, and a certain color for an activity when everybody is together (that’s the best!)
3. Look at the schedule and see what works and what doesn’t work.
4. Make adjustments.
5. Put the dry-erase board in a place where everyone sees it.
6. As days of the week pass, check them off, or assign one of your kid(s) to.  Circle things that were re-scheduled or ‘x’ things off that were cancelled.
7. On Sunday, do it again!

This will hopefully you remember what your kid is doing Wednesday at 5pm and also includes your child in on the organization and planning of your lives together.  And by encouraging them to participate, they feel empowered and a part of the plan. They also learn to be responsible by writing their list of activities or needs for the week, or even drawing a picture.

Try it out and see if it works for you.  And also, make sure to watch our video, Always Late: How To Get Out Of The House On Time, you can still make it to school before the first bell.