Routine: Why You And Your Kids Need It!

If you think that you need to organise your family so you can get things done, spend time together and have fun, establishing a daily routine, is the best place to start.

- Chris Hart

We all have routines in our lives, even when we think we don't. Like brushing teeth every night before bedtime or drinking a glass of water before breakfast. Babies and older children thrive on routines like that. Because doing the same things, in the same order, helps them to make sense of the world. So the best way to encourage a child to sleep is to have in place a great bedtime routine.

ROUTINE OUTWEIGHS TIMELINES

It is not so much about sticking to a strict schedule. Timing matters less when compared to a consistent order in routine.

And don’t worry about having a routine for a baby, say one under 12 weeks old. Infants tell us what they need. We feed them when they’re hungry and change them when they’re wet. Pretty soon, you’ll start to see patterns developing, as your baby settles into his or her own routine of sorts. Help that along by structuring your day around their needs. For example, start settling them down everyday at the time they usually sleep.

Some routines start from birth, without you noticing. The way you change nappies, sing a familiar song, their first feed, bath time, cuddles and sleep. So even though your baby’s day might seem chaotic, around then, a basic structure is already forming naturally.

ROUTINE TEACHES STRUCTURE