Guide · · Daniel Schmidheiny
Planning the week with school children: ten minutes on Sunday, fewer arguments during the week
Chores, homework, training, music lessons: weekdays are busy in families with school children. A short look at the week together takes a lot of pressure off. Here’s what that can look like.
Most arguments are about who has to do what, and when. “Do I have to set the table today?” is a fair question if the answer only exists in the parents’ heads.
Decide once what always comes back
Setting the table, tidying the room, bundling the paper recycling: chores repeat. Decide them once, with the weekday and the child, and then stop discussing them every week. Less frequent chores get their own rhythm, for example changing the sheets every other Saturday or a thorough room clean on the first Saturday of the month.
Big chores feel more manageable when they’re broken into steps. “Tidy your room” means: make the bed, put the clothes away, clear the floor. Short items starting with a verb work best.
Homework belongs to the child
Homework is the children’s job, so they plan it themselves. The child writes down what they’ve been given and when it’s due, and chooses which day to do it. Before a test, they plan two or three short study sessions instead of one long evening the night before.
Ten minutes on Sunday
A short look at the new week is enough, on Sunday evening or at breakfast on Monday:
- What’s fixed? Training, music lessons, a visit to the grandparents.
- Which homework and tests are coming up?
- Who takes which chore, and where do we need an exception this week?
- What are we looking forward to?
The last point belongs there so the week isn’t only made of duties.
Let them choose
Children join in more willingly when they have a say. Offer two or three options for Wednesday afternoon, for example baking a cake, writing a letter to Grandma or a bike ride. The child picks one.
Stars for care
Stars for finished tasks, exchanged for pocket money or screen time, work best when they reward care and perseverance. Rankings between siblings and lost streaks create pressure instead. That’s why Rondino has neither.
How Rondino helps
In “School kids” mode, Rondino focuses on exactly this everyday life. You set up chores under “Recurring”, weekly, every few weeks or monthly, with a checklist if you like. Children add homework and tests themselves. Choice tasks offer several options for one day. If you’d rather have the week on paper on the fridge, print the weekly plan as one A4 sheet per child.
Start small: three chores per child plus homework. Add whatever works.