Whether you’re a mom who dreads the start of summer weeks before it comes because of your upcoming loss of personal time or a mom who looks forward to all the time with the kids and has a long list of fun ideas, most of us hit a point somewhere in the summer where we realize that we have inadvertently ended up with children who are aimless, bored, lazy, whiny and spoiled. What?!? Yes, it happens to all of us.

How often are we ending summer annoyed, and with children with newly formed bad habits? That was never in our plans or dreams for summer!

Let’s prevent this from happening. A little planning, structure and expectation will go a long way in helping our whole family use our summers wisely, be strategic with our time, and maximize both productivity and fun. A major key to our success is in understanding a principle Andy Crouch outlines in his book “The Tech-Wise Family.” He explains how we need to abandon the cycle of toil and leisure for the far more fulfilling and enjoyable cycle of work and rest. Work with purpose. Create and produce things that bring fulfillment and joy. Be intentional with your energy. Then rest effectively. Sleep well. Engage in the activities that truly refresh and rejuvenate you, rather than simply being entertained by someone else. True rest will energize you for the next thing while leisure will promote laziness.

Let’s also not be responsible for planning everything for our children. Pass the baton and encourage them to strategically think through their own goals. How do they want to use this time? You can give guidance of things they need to consider (perhaps reading, exercise, etc.), but then give freedom for them to set their own goals as well. Giving them the time, space and a nudge to find activities that are life-giving, fun and fulfilling for them is a great gift. You will likely find more creativity and overall buy-in if your kids set their own plans.

Steps to Planning an Awesome Summer for Your Family:

1. Print out a calendar of entire summer and input any existing commitments: trips, camps, birthdays, events or other commitments.
2. Input any existing commitments: trips, camps, birthdays, regularly occurring events, etc.
3. Set goals for summer. Consider fun, quality family time, rest, work, chores, projects, social plans, how to help your kids thrive, organization or other projects to set your family up for success in the upcoming school year.
   • Click here to download a template for Summer Planning & Goal setting in Excel.
4. Think specifically of the things you want to avoid this summer. (i.e wasted, idle time, quarreling, whining, too much screen time, academic slide, etc.)
5. Brainstorm possibilities – use the spreadsheet as a springboard for ideas, consider fun, quality family time, structure, goals, what you want to accomplish
6. Set your priorities – both for the daily routine and for the summer as a whole (individual events)
7. Put your summer-long priorities on the calendar now.
8. Create a daily routine for your kids (and for you!) with your priorities built in.
9. Create an incentive plan to gain buy-in from your kids. Perhaps some of the non-priorities, but fun ideas could be used here.
10. Plan a family meeting to set expectations and lay out incentives, as well as show them how to properly track their goals, accomplishments, etc.
11. Build in fun, spontaneity, surprises – especially when the kids are thriving.
12. Pick a weekly time (Sundays or Monday mornings) to evaluate progress from previous week and set new goals. This step is critical! Planning your work is great, but remember that you have to work your plan as well! Nothing helps with that like accountability!

Family Summer Planning & Goal-Setting Chart – Excel