The Checklists that Saved Us!

Checklists beside my kiddo’s bed. (Beware of toddlers drawing on the wall with the marker.)

My daughter started second grade about a month a ago. She’s a good girl who enjoys school for the most part, but she has her fair share of issues that will probably challenge her for life. For one, she’s the youngest in her class, yet the tallest. And she was delivered 3 weeks early when she was born. I think that may play into her actual “age” a lot. So she’s young. It can be difficult for her to focus. Reading hasn’t come as easily to her as it has to most of her peers, but she’s constantly getting stronger and stronger. That’s ALL that matters to me. But I see her little confidence wavering sometimes, and that can be tough to watch as a parent. So when I see her light up with empowerment over something in her life – it’s GOLD! Which is the case with 2 simple checklists we started using at the beginning of this school year.

They are nothing more than a basic “getting ready for bed checklist” and a “getting ready for school checklist”, but they have truly given her the success in independence she craves! When her alarm goes off in the morning, she gets up and starts checking things off the list. So simple. She’s usually ready for the day with a smile on her face before I even stumble down the stairs. I no longer have to yell or repeat “did you brush you teeth?” a thousand times. I used to be the angriest morning mom, and now I’m much cooler (and so is my daughter :) It’s night and day from last year’s school mornings!

So, I’d love to share these with you if you think they may help your family too. They are FREE! Just print them out and laminate at a UPS Store or somewhere like that (I used a friend’s small home laminator that he got for $30), then hang a dry-erase marker next to the list tacked on the wall for your kiddo to start checking things off :)

I’d love to know how it goes if you give it a try.

So simple. So powerful.

Cheers to a great school year!

-Shanda