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You are here: Home / Parenting and Motherhood / Summer Schedule For Kids

By Kristen 5 Comments

Summer Schedule For Kids

Are you surviving or thriving this summer?  Do you have a child who always wants to know the plan?  Do your kids know when their free time will be?

I ask because, kids thrive on structure and routine.  As parents, we can help them by loosely scheduling their day during their free time, weekends, holidays, and summer time.

It helps them to eliminate unknowns and surprise.  Schedules also lessen anxieties and worries.

Can we have boundaries and still be flexible?  Sure!

summer schedule for kids

Maybe when your children were little you realized how powerful it was to have boundaries and routines.  Consistent food, naps, snacks, bedtime helps your child feel safe and secure.  We also realize that we cannot hold too tightly onto our boundaries because … life happens.

Our children need to learn how to relax.

They are scheduled every minute of every single day.  When they walk into school their schedule is on the board.  When they come home they have homework, chores, sports, dinner.  Then they hit repeat for the next day.

A summer schedule for kids is to be more relaxed that a school schedule.
Our kids are used to tight schedules.

They usually have something like this up in their classrooms.  {Thanks Lisa – this is from a real 2nd grade classroom.}A summer schedule for kids is to be more relaxed that a school schedule.

Or maybe you adopted this schedule from Bernadette.
Use a pocket chart with this free printable.

How to Make A Summer Schedule for Kids

I usually start my summer with a basic plan for the day and I write it down (see below).

Writing it down is critical!

I never put times with it because children will hold you to it!  Sometimes my schedule only goes until lunch time.  Then I figure out the rest of the day after lunch.

I always try to include the following 5 things each day:

  • Outside time
  • Chores
  • Quiet time
  • Free time
  • Reading time (Generally around the time the mail arrives).

I also make sure I put down TV or computer time, then they don’t have to bug me!  Depending on the child, they might really benefit from the “Earning Technology Time” chart.

Toward the middle of summer I am able to back off and relax a little.  Before school starts in the fall, I bring the schedule out again!  The kids are happier and it makes the transition back to school not as overwhelming.

Create a summer schedule for kids using a dry erase board.
A simple dry erase board or pad of paper will do the trick!

As your children get older and mature, your boundaries may be tested.

I’ve found that my tweens and teenagers do not want me to let go of our boundaries, they just want to have a say in them.

Helpful Links for the Best Summer:

  • Summer Points – How to motivate your child throughout the summer.
  • Life Skills – The essential skills they don’t teach at school, for ages 2-18.
  • DIY Summer School
  • “Earning Technology Time Chart”
  • Printable Picture Schedule
  • The power of “Free Time”

At Busy Kids Happy Mom, we believe that kids will ultimately do best over the summer if there is learning involved too!

Please check out our posts on Do-It-Yourself Summer School and Summer Points.

They’ll help you get started on thriving even more this summer!  Note:  Just start with a simple schedule.  I promise your day will go smoother.

Mom Tip:   Plan some time alone just for you.  Show your kids that you value your time.

You value using YOUR gifts and passions.  It’s not all about their soccer, karate, and their friends.  Let them know what YOU are going to do.

Maybe you’d like a date night.  Even if it’s you and your spouse alone in the kitchen with the kids in the basement watching a movie.

Kids Free Zone for 60 minutes!


Kristen is a Reading Specialist and the blogger behind Busy Kids Happy Mom, a site dedicated to fun, practical, and purposeful activities to do with your kids.  Follow Kristen on Facebook, Pinterest, and Busy Kids  Happy Mom.

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Filed Under: Parenting and Motherhood Tagged With: Motivating Your Child, Routines & Schedules

About Kristen

Kristen is an Elementary Reading Specialist. She is the owner / author behind Busy Kids Happy Mom, a site dedicated to fun, practical, and purposeful activities to do with your kids. Follow Kristen on Facebook, Pinterest, and subscribe for updates.

What People Are Saying

  1. Rebekah says

    at 12:01 am

    I am a big fan of a schedule not down to the minute, but like you, I like certain things to happen each day and they usually happen around the same time. I find this to be calming to both my daughter and I.

    Reply
  2. Jackie H. says

    at 7:44 am

    Great post!! It’s so true that kids need that. I need that too!! I have to sit down with my husband and go over the weekend before it happens!! My kids are still little and I still make them picture schedules. They can exercise their fine motor skills as they scribble off items as we go!

    Reply
  3. Karla says

    at 8:36 am

    These are great ideas to keep my kids on a structured schedule. Thanks for this post.

    Reply
    • Kristen says

      at 2:39 pm

      Thank you so much Karla! I appreciate you popping by!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Audio Books for Kids says:
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    […] Books or Books on CD.  Our most favorite quiet-time activity.  Not only do audio books improve vocabulary and comprehension, but they are highly entertaining […]

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