Your 7-Year-Old: Why routines still matter

Why routines still matter

Routines aren't only for babies and toddlers. As your child enters the primary grades, her life is full of baffling and sometimes scary new experiences. Home becomes a rock, a base of security. By sticking to predictable routines, you provide comfort she can draw on all day long. You boost her confidence, too. Having a routine she can count on helps her feel smart, because she knows what will happen next.

Your 7-year-old now

Sevens are often fond of order and routine. At this age your child has a pretty accurate sense of time and prides herself on knowing the flow of events at school, at home, and among different family members. She knows that there's a sequence of events that occur in order to get ready to go to school in the morning.

At school, she's familiar with the rhythm of the day: welcome announcements, writing lessons, math lessons, lunch, recess, story time, and so forth. Elementary school teachers usually order their day predictably to use their pupils' love of consistency to help them progress more calmly through the lessons.

You can take advantage of this tendency at home by sticking to a relatively consistent routine both morning and evening. Wake your child up at the same time every day. (It's okay to sleep in on weekends, but not so much that bedtime disintegrates and your child finds it hard to wake up come Monday.)

Establish rules based on predictability: no breakfast until you get dressed, for example. Always leave shoes in a certain place. This will make mornings go more smoothly.

Your life now

You'll notice that your child will start bringing endless amounts of paperwork home from school. The volume may make you roll your eyes, but in the pile may be notes from the teacher about class events, permission slips, and other info you don't want to miss.

Start a habit of checking for and going through your child's papers at the same time every day. It can be as soon as she comes home, or in the evening when you're packing the next day's lunch — whatever works best for you.