1. Ease back into bedtime
After a summer of late nights and lie-ins, early school mornings can come as a shock! Rather than suddenly sending your children to bed at 9pm, encourage them to gradually bring their bedtime forward in the days before school starts.
Remember that your twins or triplets may have different sleep needs and routines, so what works for one may not work for the other.
2. Make sure they can get themselves up
Teenagers aren't always at their best first thing in the morning! Encourage each twin to set their own alarms and take responsibility for getting up.
If you know neither of them is going to manage it alone, be prepared to go in and physically get them out of bed! Just make sure you're not accidentally becoming the alarm clock for both of them.
3. Keep phones out of the bedroom
This is a good rule all year round, but particularly when you're trying to get sleep routines back on track.
Agree with your children where their phones will be charged overnight. Keeping them out of the bedroom can help avoid late-night scrolling and means they're less likely to be woken by notifications.
4. Get everything ready the night before
Packing two school bags, finding two sets of uniform and locating two PE kits can make for a stressful morning!
Encourage your multiples to take responsibility for getting their own things ready the night before. Bags packed, uniform out and everything they need by the door means fewer things to worry about when everyone's half asleep.
5. Talk through the morning routine
Have a conversation about how mornings will work once school starts.
Do they want to get ready together or separately? Do they need the bathroom at the same time? Are there things they can do the night before?
Try to involve both in the plan. They may have very different ideas about what makes a good morning routine!
Support parents who need it most
Give today to help us reach more families with twins, triplets or more.
6. Agree the journey to school
If your twins or triplets travel to school together, make sure they know the plan – particularly if they're meeting friends to walk or cycle.
If they travel separately, check that each twin knows exactly what they're doing. Are they meeting friends? Getting the bus? Walking together or alone?
It's worth agreeing this beforehand rather than trying to sort it out at 8am. Knowing where your multiples are supposed to be can also give everyone some peace of mind.
7. Check the timetable – and check how they feel
School timetables may have been updated over the summer, so take a look at them together.
Talk to each child individually about how they're feeling about going back. They may have different subjects they're looking forward to or worried about, even if they're in the same class.
Try not to assume that because one twin is feeling confident, the other feels the same.
8. Talk about homework
Ask each twin how they plan to manage their homework. Will they do it when they get home, after a break or at the weekend?
Giving teenagers responsibility for getting their work done is important, but knowing what their plan is can help you resist the urge to nag.
And remember, twins / triplets don't necessarily need the same approach. One may be naturally organised while the other needs a little more support.
We've got you
If you need to talk things through, we're here to help. Our trained helpline volunteers are here to listen and everyone you speak to is a parent of twins, triplets or more, so they get it.
9. Check in with each twin separately
It's important to make time to talk to your children individually, as well as together.
Ask how they're feeling about going back and whether they're happy with their plans. Are they walking into school with their sibling or separately? Are they happy with that? Are they meeting friends after school or going their separate ways?
Twins and triplets can sometimes feel responsible for each other, so make sure each knows they don't have to do everything together. It's OK for them to have different friends, routines and plans.
10. Go easy on everyone for the first couple of weeks
Going back to school is a big adjustment - and getting up early again can be hard enough without adding lots of extra pressure.
If you can, go easy on some of the things that might normally cause friction for the first week or two. Messy bedrooms can wait!
Give your children time to settle back into their routines, and remember that they may adjust at different speeds. The aim isn't to have everything perfect on day one – it's to help everyone find their rhythm again.
Published