3 summer routines that will make the school year better

Summer is here -woohoo!

It's the time for exploration, creativity, and getting active! Especially for your middle schooler. Whatever your conditions are - so many of you are working, your kids are in camp or with a sitter- it's all good. This is still the time to embrace everything you can about summer.

It's the energy of this time of year that I'm talking about, not always the amount of time you have. And one thing that can help you get there is setting up a killer summer routine.

Routines aren't all about structure and redundancy and being boring, they can actually be a huge opportunity to create intentional time to experience more openness and joy. And you and your middle schooler need these things for your mental health and physical health.

The payoffs of prioritizing these routines have a huge impact on the success of the school year. So here is a peek at the latest Elevated Adolescence Podcast episode where I share the three summer routines that have the greatest impact during the school year. 

Are you ready to create the ultimate summer routine that will give you more freedom and set your middle schooler up for success in the school year?

[1:54] The brain-body connection is proven...when your brain thinks something your body reacts. And similarly when your body is in movement your brain is stimulated to make those connections. It's critical your middle schooler knows this too.

[2:30] Get yourself active...prioritize your own physical health and create moments where you can be active together or they can be active independently.

[3:13] Their time off this summer is a great opportunity to strengthen your growth mindset together. What I mean by this is to create open ended opportunities to make learning and creativity and curiosity fun and invite failure and experimentation.

[3:44] Now is the time to practice developing a routine to embrace what it means to truly fail and pivot and learn from their experiences.

[5:11] This right here is growth mindset in action. If your middle schooler practices the routine when the stakes aren't as high, they will have developed the neurological wiring of a growth mindset when they have more responsibilities and to-dos that count.

[5:35] Taking care of your true selves...use these summer months to create a new routine around self-care.

[6:09] Teaching your middle schooler to be in tune with their own needs builds an inner voice that they honor and trust.

[9:40] #1: Build a routine around the brain and body connection and see what happens to both of your mental states. #2: Create the conditions in your home where experimentation and failure are celebrated and #3: guide them towards a healthy self-care routine for both of you.

Like what you hear? Keep listening to the Elevated Adolescence Podcast