It’s so essential for a child to build a pattern of orderly by establishing predictable rituals and habits that contribute to healthy development. Children need the sense of security that predictable routines bring, and it will also prepare them down the road to be an adult who has discipline and honor their commitments and responsibilities.
Routines are essential to work the biological needs, social, and psychological well-being of the child, from personal hygiene activities to mealtimes and even the habits relating to them. Naps, downtime, and bedtime are also crucial in your child’s development. It is during their sleep, all the things they learn and experience during the day get consolidated. It also helps your child adapt to their biological clock and to calm down when bedtime approaches. If you have school-age children, take time to participate in homework and school events as a family, strengthening the bond, improving communication, and the feeling of belonging.
Routines help children to feel safer and help develop a sense of space and time
It is imperative for a child to feel safe. Being able to predict what is coming next, also allows the child to have control of their activities, which helps build a sense of space and time, another fundamental skill that would reflect in an adult who has excellent time management, is well-organized, and is able to conceptualize their thoughts both in their social or professional interactions.
Encourage their autonomy and independence
Another teaching from establishing and following routines is the implementation delayed gratification, for example: picking their favorite snack to have after finishing homework, or maybe 15 minutes of screen time after homework or after dinner. As time goes by, habits will form, and they won’t be seen as a chore, and you probably will have to remind them less and less. Establish the routine, stick to it until the habit is built, and, soon, your child will be following them on their own.
All of these skills are an essential part of their development; after all, they are whole beings, even as babies, and we need to foster the development of the whole child: emotions and feelings, taste, fine, and gross motor coordination, autonomy, curiosity, and cultural identity. Authors such as Thiessen and Beal claim that this is the period in which the foundations of their affectivity, socialization, and intelligence are built. The integral and harmonious construction of the whole individual.
Establish a routine in this quarantine with your child, take a few moments to bond with them, and participate in their daily activities. Do your best to follow the established routine as it will ease and foster your child’s optimum development, and, in such challenging times like this, when the whole world is going through sudden changes, they rely on strong and healthy adults with an inner sensitive child and real compassion.
