From the holidays back to school: how do we find a rhythm again without turning the house into a barracks?

Summer has its own rules.

A child goes to bed later, wakes up later, meals shift, screens increase and the schedule becomes — understandably — a good deal looser.

And then September comes.

“How is he going to get up in the mornings now?” “She has completely forgotten her routine.” “All summer he was on the tablet.”

Returning to the school routine, though, does not have to happen in a single day. Just as a child needed time to unwind from the school schedule, they may need a gradual period of readjustment too.

1. Move bedtime gradually

If a child has grown used to going to bed much later over the holidays, it is difficult to demand suddenly that they sleep two hours earlier because “school starts tomorrow”.

Start shifting bedtime and waking time gradually towards the school timetable. Morning daylight, a consistent waking time and a calm evening routine can also help the body clock adjust. Specialists recommend this gradual transition rather than an abrupt last-minute change.

2. Bring back the “anchors” of the day first

The whole day does not need organising from day one.

Start with a few fixed points: waking time, meals, an afternoon activity and bedtime.

Once those start to become predictable, the rest of the schedule can be built around them.

3. Screens do not have to disappear because school has started

If the tablet was used for several hours over the summer, a sudden ban will most likely create more tension.

Instead, we can gradually reintroduce specific times of use and, above all, protect certain moments of the day: homework, the family meal and sleep.

The AAP recommends no screens at mealtimes, during study and for roughly an hour before bed, as well as keeping devices out of the bedroom at night.

4. Prepare together whatever can be anticipated

Bag, clothes, school supplies, the route, the timetable.

Particularly for a child who struggles with transitions, knowing what is about to happen can significantly reduce the chaos of that first morning.

You can even make a simple visual schedule together for the first few days.

5. Do not fill every afternoon straight away

School, English, sport, homework, another activity — and suddenly a child moves from total relaxation to a day without a single free hour.

Free time is not wasted time.

Going back to school demands adjustment in itself. Leave room for play, rest, movement and a daily life the child can actually sustain.

6. Expect a little grumbling

Difficulty adjusting does not necessarily mean something is going wrong.

In the first few days a child may be more tired, more irritable, or react more strongly to boundaries.

Instead of:

“You had everything your own way for months and now you need to pull yourself together”

we can say:

“I know it is hard to change your routine again. We will need a few days to get used to it.”

The boundary stays. But it can sit alongside understanding.

Not everything has to be perfect by the first bell

Returning to a routine is a transition, not a switch.

A little more predictability each day, boundaries that are firm but realistic, and time to adjust are often far more effective than an abrupt attempt to put everything back “in its place”.

And perhaps this is a useful reminder for parents themselves:

It is not only children who return to the school routine. The whole family returns.

So give them a little time — and yourselves too.

This text is informational and psychoeducational. It is not a diagnosis and does not replace a session with a mental health professional.