Routine & Holiday Rhythm Hacks

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As the holiday season approaches normal rhythms of home, work, and school, life can get disrupted. The sights, sounds, and smells of the holiday season can be overwhelming for any child. Here are some tips to help create a routine to best support your child during the holiday season.

Family Meeting - Have periodic family meeting to talk about how the holiday season is not like normal days. Ask what kind of activities your child would like to do.

Visual Schedules - This helps keep kids aware of upcoming events and will help kids anticipate what is coming next this season.

Be Mindful of Sleep - Keep waking, napping, and bedtime routines as similar as possible, but also communicate if ever there will be exceptions.

Bookend - At the end of the day, having an activity or task can help signal to a kid that it is time to end the day. It could be reading a book, saying a prayer, reading, or even a seasonal family tradition.

Outdoor Time - Getting outside consistently is a wonderful way to de-stress during holiday season! Nature walks, playing at the park, and strolls around the neighborhood to look at lights are a couple fun things to do. During this busy season, take time to take in the sights, smells, and textures of nature.

Manage Screen Time - To help manage screen time plan alternative fun themed crafts, art projects, or block out time to read stories and engage in dramatic play. Just keep in mind that transition from screen time helps but symptoms of too much screen time could be irritability, entitlement, or consistent dysregulated behaviors. 

Buffer Transitions - This can be a busy season but scheduling buffer transitions so as to lessen family stress can be helpful.