I consider myself lucky that I got to have a lot of experience working with kids before I became a parent. I’m a middle school teacher, but before my first year of teaching I worked in a day camp with elementary age kids, and I was an aide in a kindergarten and first grade classroom. So I’ve had a lot of time working with kids of all ages. Here are the things I’ve learned that have helped me the most as a mom.
1. Be consistent with expectations and consequences
Cleaning up after ourselves is an expectation at our house.
This is one of the toughest parts of being a teacher and a parent. Luckily for me, I’ve gotten to figure out what works for me over the course of many years, and each year I get to start over. What I’ve learned is the only rules that exist in a classroom or home are the ones you enforce. If you say you need to clean up your room before bed time but only enforce it once a week, it’s confusing to kids. If you enforce your rules consistently, kids know what to expect and it’s easier on everyone. Consequences can be positive or negative, and they should be positive whenever possible.
2. Always have a plan… and a plan B
Keeping busy during a long delay at the airport.
Planning is one of my favorite parts of teaching, and I enjoy it as a parent as well. At both home and school, I think about what I want to teach or do. I look for activities that will be appropriate for interest and ability level and work with the materials that I have available. But in both school and home life, things do not always go as planned. I have backup filler activities in my classroom if technology isn’t working, or if a lesson ends early. I also have these as a mom. A lot of times, these happen when we are encountering an unexpected wait. We love to sing songs and play the color game. (I see something orange. Can you find it?) I also have a small finger puppet, a spare diaper, wipes, and a disposable changing mat in my purse. Because sometimes things happen unexpectedly, and I always like to be prepared.
3. Kids like having a routine
Buddy has always loved to read while he waits for me to be ready to play.
Kids of all ages find comfort in knowing what to expect. As my kids enter my classroom, they know that they will always need to pick up papers, set out their homework, and get working on their starter problem every day. I always greet my kids at the door and remind them what to do, but I’ve discovered on days when I’m doing something last minute or have lost my voice, they will do these things without asking. At home, Buddy and I have a routine for after school. We often run errands, so he asks where are we going today when I get him. When we get home, he plays on his own while I change clothes and go to the bathroom. He knows that I will come play after 10-15 minutes, so he doesn’t worry too much about what I’m doing during that time. On weekends, we have our lunch and nap time at consistent times. We also have routines set in place during the summer. One of the things I do is to set a summer schedule of different themed activities each day. (Read more about that here.)
4. Jobs are helpful for both kids and adults
Buddy likes to help emptying the dishwasher.
I’ve blogged about this before, but I will say it again. I think it’s important for kids of all ages to have chores and expectations. In my classroom, I hire students to do different jobs and they are paid in extra credit for each week the job is completed correctly. It makes my life easier, and they enjoy having the responsibility. Buddy has had jobs since age one and several of them started before he could walk. He loves helping, and I love having the help. Read here and here for more details about Buddy’s chores at age one and two.
5. Kids learn more when they are having fun
Buddy was having so much fun learning about shapes.
I’m not sure if all parents are aware of this, but you are one of the most important teachers in your child’s life. Young children learn shapes, numbers, letters, colors, and much more from their parents. Older children learn work ethic and perseverance from their parents, and often they ask parents for help with school work too. No matter what you want them to learn from you, they will learn and remember more if they have fun while they do it. My class plays games or does puzzles almost every day. My favorite teacher resource is TeachersPayTeachers.com. I don’t think many parents know about this, so I’m sharing it here. There are a ton of free and fun resources available for parents and teachers alike. You can search by topic and click on a filter to show only free resources. You can also search for fun stuff, which is another favorite filter of mine. Here are a few favorite, free resources for preschoolers on TPT: Make it Stick pre-K games, Crocodile Snap Alphabet Game, Penguin PreWriting Practice Cards, Customizable Name Mats
I hope those teacher tips were helpful to you in your life as a parent. If you have any other parenting words of wisdom, please feel free to share a comment.
