It’s hard to believe, but my baby boy started pre-Kindergarten this school year! He’s been in preschool before, but this year, he’s officially in pre-Kindergarten and learning all those necessary skills to get him ready for Kindergarten next year. Here in Florida, pre-Kindergarten is three hours a day and if you wish, you can enroll your child in wrap-around daycare for an extra fee, so he or she can stay past the three hours. This year, we chose not to do the wrap-around in order to save the daycare cost, especially since we are currently building a new home and know we’ll have plenty of associated expenses coming up!
Not having the wrap-around daycare means our baby boy is home with me after his three hours of pre-K. As a business owner and work at home mom, I needed to figure out a plan for having him home with me each afternoon and still be productive. Plus, I wanted to expand on his learning while home, rather than have him “be bored” or watching TV. So, I came up with a daily afternoon routine for my preschooler that mimics the school’s daily schedule. It allows my baby boy to play and learn and allows me to be productive, but also spend time with him. Our afternoon routine is nothing fancy, but it works for us and provides a good balance of play time, alone time, and “time with mommy.” Check it out and see if it works for you and your preschooler! I’ve even provided a free printable routine for you to use!
Sample Afternoon Routine for Preschoolers {Free Printable}
Rather than list specific times next to each activity, I’m going to share our routine with block times. I know that everyone’s schedule can be different, plus even we adjust our daily routine to meet our mood and life’s flow. The important thing is to have some structure for your child’s day, but also be flexible in case the day’s events require some adjustment. If you think this will work for you and your preschooler, download our free printable preschool daily routine chart!
- School pick-up: I pick up my baby boy around noon, so we’re usually home shortly after, unless we have a quick errand to run.
- Potty break: Right after we get home, I remind him to go potty, because we all know that our preschoolers still need that reminder throughout the day.
- Get moving time! Since I know he needs a mental break after just getting home from school, we have some movement time first. This can be a bit of exercise, yoga, or just stretching! He loves that I do this with him and it helps me get some added movement in my day. Win-win!
- Language center: After we’ve had a bit of exercise, I like to do what his school calls language center. It’s better to do this earlier in our routine rather than later, so he can focus better. Language center includes writing practice, letter or phonics games, or time to play on ABCmouse.com or Starfall.com. (Try ABCmouse.com for free with their first month free subscription offer!
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- Snack & story time: Since he has lunch during his pre-K hours, it’s fine to wait a bit for our afternoon snack. We combine snack time with story time, where I’ll read him a story (or two) as he eats!
- Quiet time: Once he’s had his snack, my baby boy then has quiet time. He used to take a nap, but as of this August, he officially outgrew naps. (Boo!) So, now he has a bit of quiet play time, which is when I’m able to do some work!
- Dance break! Since my boy is very active and preschoolers still need a variety in their schedules, I have a quick dance break built in towards the end of our afternoon routine. It’s a nice change of pace after his quiet time and before our last activity!
- Art center: The last activity in our afternoon routine is arts and crafts time! We call it art center since that’s what he knows from school, but it’s just basically time for him to get creative. Sometimes I have a planned craft or art activity for him to do and other times I let him choose. It can be as simple as coloring or free drawing, but a lot of times he chooses to paint!
Free Printable Preschool Daily Routine Chart
Click here or on image to download and print! [PDF]
As you can see, I focus on giving him attention right after he comes home from pre-K before switching to time alone so I can work. After being at school in the morning, he definitely wants to spend time with mommy, so asking him to have quiet time right away wouldn’t work. (Believe me – I learned this the hard way!) Chunking our time with activities we do together first has been working great! This afternoon routine for preschoolers is simple, but I feel it has a nice mix of expanding on his school day with learning at home combined with playtime and activities that allow me to be productive.
Do you have a preschooler at home? What does your daily routine look like?
All photos © Melanie Edwards/modernmami™
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