Tips to Teach Kids Time Management

One of our jobs as parents is to help children become self-sufficient. It’s no secret that no one wins when parents do everything for their kids. The start of the school year is a perfect time to teach (or reinforce) time management skills. Here are some quick tips. Read the full article at www.sandiegofamily.com/parenting/10-tips-toteach-your-kids-time-management.

Set a bedtime.

Kids ages 5–12 need 10–11 hours of sleep per day. Set a reasonable bedtime and stick to it.

Turn your child’s routine into a checklist.

Instead of badgering kids to get stuff done, hold them accountable to finish their tasks. To get started, print San Diego Family’s free morning/nighttime Back-to-School Routine checklist at www.sandiegofamily.com/resources/ education-directory/organization-tipsfor-school.

Have kids create their own calendars.

The sooner kids start learning to use a calendar, the sooner they will become more independent, and the less you’ll have to do for them (which is a good thing!).

Put time on their side.

Help kids develop a greater awareness of time by buying them a watch and teaching them how to gauge the amount of time needed to complete routine tasks. Good news for little ones—there are some great games available that start teaching time concepts as young as 2 years old. (See sidebar.)

Teach kids to plan ahead. Being somewhere on time, prepared and ready to go, requires planning. Help kids create a checklist of what they need to do and items needed before departure until it becomes second nature.

Establish meal times.

Setting regular meal times for the family (such as 7 a.m. breakfast) will not only help kids become more aware of time, but helps ensure time is spent together as a family.

Eliminate distractions. Nothing sucks up time like being glued to a screen. Be sure to set parameters around screen usage, whether it’s TV, phone, iPad, tablet or something else. Parents, too! v

Time Telling Game

$23.99; Ages 5+ eeboo.com

This fun game gets kids up to speed on reading clocks and telling time. Players move the arms on their own clock face to reflect time on the cards. It is also helpful for learning terms such as “half past” and “quarter to.” Cards are colorcoded for the progression of time-telling skills.

Wonder Tree Shape Sorting

Clock

$32.99; Ages 2+ us.bababooandfriends.com

The Bababoo and friends sorting clock teaches children how to put numbers on a clock in order and how to read time, while developing logical thinking, language skills and hand-eye coordination.

My Fun Day

$38; Ages 3+

SimplyFun.com

Use the colorful wooden board and fun activity cards to help children create awareness of their daily schedule, such as time, days of the week, months of the year and seasons.