Morning routine- 5.5 and 4 yr old

amother

Dodgerblue

Fri, Dec 02 2016, 3:52 am

It depends on the child and his/her personality.

I thought my oldest was sooo independent when she insisted on dressing herself at what I considered a young age. She needed help with things like buttons but I didn't mind that. It helps to buy clothing that is simple and easy to put on and take off.

Now my baby, who is almost 2, keeps insisting that she wants to do everything by herself. But she really can't. It takes far longer to get her dressed when she won't let me dress her until she's tried to do it herself a couple of times. But it takes even longer to get her dressed if I have to deal with her tantrums if I don't let her try so it's not worth the fight.

If you want your children to dress themselves then there a few things you can do to facilitate:

Make sure their clothing is simple to put on and take off. Buttons and snaps are hard for little fingers to manage. Loose clothing is easier than tight clothing.

Give them choices. Let them pick their outfits or at least choose from a couple of different options.

Make a chart or pictograph to remind them of the order they should put their clothing on. You probably do it instinctively and automatically but it's not necessarily intuitive to young children.

Make getting dressed on their own something fun to do. Set a timer and challenge them to get dressed before it rings or make it a race or give them a small treat or sticker when they do what they are supposed to. Once it becomes routine you can drop the incentives.

Make sure to lavish praise on them for their efforts as well as for the final results.

MMCH

Fri, Dec 02 2016, 7:14 am

was just thinking about this!
my oldest is 6 and is pretty independent kid all around and listens to me very nicely- however when it comes to putting on her uniform in the morning, shes like a 4 year old.
I prepare it for her every night and go tell her to get dressed and within 30 seconds every morning she comes to ask me to do it for her.
now im thinking she just likes the way I put tights on better, or how I tuck her in- she probably feels neater.
my 2nd dd total opposite- shes 4 and I get her dressed completely and will most mornings have to fight her to cooperate.

younger than that I dont even expect/have patience for them to get dressed alone LOL

behappy2

Fri, Dec 02 2016, 9:54 am

My son is 6. He has some fine motor and organization challenges. I have always dressed him. He is also very distracted and playful. We used to have lots of meltdowns around consequences for not cooperating. Not coming when I call him. Now I just walk over to him with a pile of his clothing and let him know I am dressing him. I let him continue playing as long as it doesn't interfere with dressing. This is working out really well and he cooperates. I used to stress about having him be like everyone else his age. Now I focus on his own personal needs. I try not to pay too much attention to the fact that my nephew his age cleans up his messes, dresses himself, etc.... every kid has their own personality, own set of unique challenges. Lotsof luck!