Implementing Effective Routines - From Micro-Routines to Macro-Routines

Your children, free from the stress of tight schedules and the fatigue accumulated during the school year, are generally naturally more available and receptive to changes; without the morning rush to school and evenings packed with homework, they finally have the time and energy needed to engage in learning new responsibilities and actively participate in family life.

Summer also offers you a luxury generally rare during the school year: time in the morning! These precious extra hours not only allow you to gradually introduce new routines without rushing, but also to actively support your children in their learning.

Finally, the investment made during the holidays to establish these new family habits will certainly allow you to reap the rewards throughout the year. Routines solidly anchored during the beautiful season will become valuable automatisms that will greatly facilitate daily management when school resumes, thus creating lasting family harmony and a better distribution of household responsibilities.

The concept: micro-routine to macro-routine

Start one step at a time

Take advantage of this extra time available to you to break down each small daily routine into micro-steps, which will foster lasting learning and the development of autonomy, a valuable asset in daily family life.

Concrete example: Brushing teeth

1. I wet my toothbrush and turn off the tap.
2. I put a pea-sized amount of toothpaste on my toothbrush.
3. I brush my upper teeth, then my lower teeth.
4. I rinse my mouth and spit into the sink.
5. I rinse my toothbrush.
6. I make sure to leave the area clean.

Take the time to repeat the process for each task that needs to be learned by the child, to ensure no step is forgotten!

Add a new step when the child is ready

You already know: each child develops at their own pace, and the same applies to learning daily routines. Therefore, it is important not to rush to add a step without first ensuring that the previous one is well assimilated by the child. Even if a micro-step seems easy to you, it must be completely mastered before a new one is added to the routine, otherwise the child could easily become discouraged by the magnitude of the task. Be patient and persistent: for your child, everything asked of them is new and therefore requires time and a lot of effort, make sure to keep that in mind!

Final goal: the macro-routine

Is the routine now modeled as a whole and your child perfectly masters each of its micro-steps? It's time to move on to the macro-routine: instead of offering your little one a reminder of each step that makes up the tooth brushing routine or the morning routine, instead set up a single general reminder, which is "do your routine". At this stage, each of the thousand and one micro-steps that must be accomplished in one of the daily routines is assimilated by the child, and their execution is therefore done automatically and autonomously, just as when, as an adult, you prepare your morning coffee or drive your car!

For guaranteed success

To ensure the success of learning new routines, don't forget to take the following points into consideration:

• Enjoy the summer rhythm: children who are less rushed and tired are certainly an important success factor when it comes to developing new habits!
• Invest the necessary time: a new habit takes time to be perfectly integrated, so be patient through the process and your perseverance will surely be rewarded!
• Avoid rushing: whether as an adult or a child, it is much more difficult to be open and collaborative when feeling rushed or pressured into learning and developing new habits. Again, take advantage of the beautiful days and the time available to allow the necessary space for your children to integrate lasting habits.

Ready to enjoy the summer to optimize your daily life and develop your little ones' autonomy? Discover all our tools and consult our special file, precious allies in your success!