Tips for Managing Family Timetables

Get organised by being fully aware of everyone’s timetable.

* As soon as school resumes after summer holidays, draw up the class timetable for each of your children, along with their extra-curricular activities and a list of what accessories are needed for those days, so that both you and they can get organised in advance.

* Nothing calms timetabling chaos like a calendar. Invest in a large paper calendar for the whole family and put it up where everyone can see it at a glance. Use a highlighter pen to distinguish special events.

* Make the family calendar do double-duty by noting all the usual things – school events, birthdays, appointments – as well as listing what’s for dinner up to a week ahead. It will make shopping lists quicker and easier to compile and you can avoid shopping more than is necessary.

*b Use the family calendar to record your children’s long-term school assignments, so that you also know when work is due and you can help to avoid any last-minute dramas that will waste your time as well as theirs.

* Make a note on the family calendar, and in your diary or PDA, of school holiday dates, so you can organise holiday lettings, tickets and pet care well in advance. It may save you time researching alternative options.

* Keep older children on top of your timetable (especially if you work outside of the home) by putting up a noticeboard in the kitchen, and update notes as necessary. For instance, if you’re going to be home late after a meeting, leave a note telling the children to call you when they’re home and that dinner is in the fridge and only needs reheating.

* Using text messaging, or SMSing, is a fast-and-easy way to alert family members to a change of timetabling. Without having to actually call and interrupt each other, you can instantaneously communicate a change of plan, which saves both time and inconvenience.

From 10,001 Timesaving Ideas