From the Counsellors
Routine
Welcome back everyone to Term 4! We hope you all enjoyed the holidays, exploring, creating and relaxing.
As a new term commences we are all provided with an excellent opportunity to re-establish our daily/weekly routines. Routines are extremely important for children (and young families especially) and we would like to emphasise why.
Routines at home are important as they provide consistency, boundaries and expectations. These all help children to feel safe and they make home a safe space. Many young people are experiencing increased anxiety this year and this places higher importance on our routines.
Routines also help children to develop healthy habits, such as eating, sleeping, doing chores and studying. These will assist our young people as they transition into adulthood.
To establish a new routine it can be helpful to slowly introduce activities, one by one. Adding one new activity to the routine each week is a gradual way to make changes. Simplicity and enjoyment are the other two elements that can assist in establishing a new routine. Make it simple by adding in the activities in around existing routines (e.g. when the child gets home from school, after sport training, before dinner). And make it fun – add in activities that the child will enjoy, give positive feedback when they follow the routine (e.g. praise, hugs, attention), and provide small rewards as an incentive.
For adolescents, it is important to give them some say in their routine. Providing them with the opportunity to have some freedom and control over their routine is helpful as they will be more likely to follow the routine. It will also assist them to develop important life skills such as planning, prioritising and reflecting. It is important that parents and carers:
- provide them with guidance when they are initially establishing the routine (make it a team effort)
- help them to reflect on the routines they have established, ask:
What about the routine is working well? What isn’t? How might changes be made to overcome any problems in the routine?
Households with consistent routines and clear expectations save parents considerable time and energy, and hence it is worthwhile putting in the effort to establish a routine now to save yourself time (and stress) in the future. For guidance or any questions you might have in regards to establishing a routine please do not hesitate to get in touch.
The following website was used in the preparation of this article:
www.melbournechildpsychology.com.au/blog/the-importance-of-routine-in-childhood/
Gai Bath (Kinder–Year 6) and
Jane Sutcliffe (Year 7–12)
SMC Counsellors