Back to School Blues

“My 9-year-old daughter is having a hard time getting back into the routine for school. So far, mornings have been the worst. She is tired, cranky, and whiny about having to get up and get ready. We spend most of the morning arguing and she has already been late to class a couple of days. What can I do to get her out of bed without all the drama?”

Getting back into the swing of things can be a difficult adjustment for almost everyone—kids and adults alike. Most people don’t like to go back to school or work after vacation, and it sounds like your daughter needs a little extra help from you as she gets back in the program.

An easy, relatively stress-free morning starts the night before. Make sure your daughter is getting to bed early enough that can get a good 10 hours of sleep; so if she gets up at 7:00 lights should be out no later than 9:00 the night before. If bedtime is 9 o’clock, have her start getting ready for bed at 8:30 (or even 8:00 on bath night)—PJs on, you read a story to her and she reads on her own for a few minutes to relax. I would say absolutely no TV during this time—unless you want to bore her to sleep with CSPAN, cartoons would only further stimulant her brain (not in a good way), keeping her up longer. The half an hour or so before bed is a time for unwinding and settling in for the night.

Now I don’t have girls, but I’ve heard it can also be helpful to pick out tomorrow’s outfit the night before. Set her alarm for 15 minutes early to give your daughter a little extra time to wake up. Ten minutes later, quietly go in the room and tell her she has five more minutes until she needs to get up. Then it’s time to get dressed, eat breakfast, comb hair, brush teeth, etc. Homework and chores should be done the prior evening so morning is all about preparing for the day ahead. If your daughter has gotten ready with time to spare—without complaining—reward her by letting her do something she enjoys, such as playing, until it is time to go.

Give this a try for a few weeks and see what happens. If things are still hectic in the morning and the tardy slips keep on comin', then it will be time to put together a planned consequence such as doing extra chores for every minute she is late to school. In the meantime, work with her as best you can to help your daughter overcome her back to school blues.