Teaching your kids to be ORGANIZED

 

 

With such a busy household to run, Sunday evening demands that I sit for a few minutes, trusty organizer in hand going through what to expect for the upcoming week. From noting down play practices, to midweek birthday parties to trips to the dentist, I am compelled to be organized to successfully steer the kids through another busy week.

 

If I fail to note the time for a particular class then the scheduled events for the day crumble like a pack of cards leaving a disappointed child in its midst. A part of me rebels at the need for me to be so boringly organized, how exciting to begin a day and see where the day takes us.

 

But of course I have children to raise and those fanciful ideas are for the young and carefree. Saying that though I think it’s high time that my children take a vested interest in organizing their own activities. Infact by taking that step in helping them to be responsible for themselves you are teaching them life lessons for the future.

 

Of course it will be an utter failure if you suddenly announce to your child that today you stop being their unpaid secretaries and it is up to them to figure out their day. As kids are, they usually ooze disorganization flitting from one task to another. Keeping that in mind teach them the first three steps to becoming organized

 

Getting Started – Teach your children to gather supplies needed, to stop procrastinating and start the project at hand.

 

Staying focused – Remind your child that a task once begun needs to done and saying no to distractions is very important.

 

Getting it done – This means that your child will have to complete the task, be it a homework project, clean up, pack it away in the right folder or file. The task is completely finished in this sense. 

 

Once these basic guidelines are established then by adhering to the following steps, our children get an introduction into being organized individuals.

 

 

 

 

Step 1

 

Children learn best from example, by seeing you run an organized household, they feel compelled to be systematic in their own activities. Also by having a smoothly running household, children know what to expect when they get home. Lunch at 1.00pm, dinner at 7.00pm, home work from 3.00 to 4.00, this encourages your children to blend into an organized routine.

 

 

Step 2

 

Invest in a diary, calendar or white board for your child. Get them to write out their activities for the week. Use a whiteboard to write out last minute reminders, such as remember your swimming bag. These last minute notices help a child plan their day and is much better than digging through a pile of handouts from school to find out which event is when.

 

 

Step 3

 

Minimize stress, be prepared. Trying to do projects at the minute or cram for tests at the umpteenth hour only results in unnecessary stress. Always remind your child of their pending tasks, by reminding them you are not doing the task for them and this will not negate organizational learning. 

 

 

Step 4

 

Rope your child into doing tasks at home, this gives them the confidence when they complete a task successfully and that feeling of happiness flows over and we have happy proud children. Thus remembering this feeling children feel compelled to take on responsibility for their own tasks.

 

 

Obviously some children are born organizers, then this exercise will be an easy one to instill in them. But of course there are the daydreamers, the time wasters who we will find hard to break in. But this is the time to instill such qualities in our children, for when they are young we can mold their behavior and set the stage for adulthood. Live life right, get organized!

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Mayuri Jayasinghe