


March 22, 2024
These days, any adult conversation contains some sort of utterance of how incredibly busy and chaotic life is at the moment, and although it’s only March, we all need a holiday. Life is madness when you have a busy family, and the only way to truly get on top of it is to keep calm and schedule!
Now, keeping track of everyone’s schedule can also be a mammoth project on its own, so here are 8 simple tips on how to best manage a family schedule.
It's time for a family discussion about taking responsibility for our schedules. Let's start by making sure younger kids understand their daily tasks and why they are important. For example, if Gabe (8) knows he has a soccer match on Thursday, he should inform Mom about needing new shin pads on Monday, rather than waiting until Thursday morning. By looking ahead and planning together as a family, we can avoid chaos and ensure smooth sailing.
Of course a giant, pin-up calendar or schedule board works, especially for younger kids, where everyone writes what they are doing that week on to the board. But, in this new tech era, there are some wonderful digital options that can keep tech savvy teens and parents on the same ‘screen’.
Look into Google Calendar, Cozi Family Organiser, or the Maple Household Planner (all available on the App Store) for some options. Here everyone has access to the family calendar and can not only input their commitments but can also see what everyone else is doing. This is important for kids to realise that they are PART of a functioning family and not the centre of it.
When creating your family calendar, make sure you cover all the long and short-term bases. Consider scheduling the following:
Let your family members choose their favourite colour and that will be their colour on the schedule. This helps parents when they need information on a specific child. You won’t have to trawl through everyone’s plans, you can simply look for Olivia’s blue or click on the blue calendar and all Olivia’s entries for the week will pop up. This makes it quick and easy for everyone to use.
It’s important to have family meetings to discuss what is coming up, and for parents to guide the entry process for your children. These meetings should be consistent and non-negotiable and should happen at a time when most of the family is together. Sunday early evening is a good time to meet because it’s the start of the new week. After the meeting, everyone should not only enter their activities onto the calendar, they should also then use the information to pack their school bags and sports equipment for the week.
Set reminders (whether off a hard copy schedule on to your phone or digitally):
The truth is, no matter how well you schedule, things will always change. Teaching your kids to be flexible and to problem-solve is a valuable life lesson. If something changes on the schedule, your children must change it themselves and must alert the family to the change. If this change causes a time conflict, then solutions must be offered. Managing a change that pops up on a schedule is still much less stressful than not having a schedule at all and getting knocked left, right, and centre by surprises.
Getting the whole family to use the family calendar might be a mission upfront, but if you get it right it will calm the family chaos. If someone forgets to use the calendar don’t rip them to shreds, rather reward those that use the calendar consistently. Also, be sure to plan some fun. Secretly insert ‘family movies’ into the calendar so your children get a nice surprise while diligently doing their weekly planning!
1. Communication
2. Time Management
3. Planning Skills
4. Flexibility
5. Trust (of each other)