How to calm my children down ?

[KatieDD]

They seem constantly stressed and highly strung or completely day dreaming, nothing in the middle.
Am thinking more exercise, walking bus in the morning, swimming, gym, karate a couple of times a week.
They have nothing but home cooked food and school meals so don't think it's their diet.
Was thinking of trying a child yoga bugs dvd or something.
Am I missing anything obvious ?
Thank you

[gigglewitch]

exercise sounds like a good way to go (as long as you don't wear 'em out instead )
how old are they?

btw (typical of a mother of dc with food allergies) have you noticed any correlation to what they eat - my dc don't absorb their food well and get huge dips [aka no concentration / daydreaming] and we don't ever touch stuff with colouring in like skittles, orange squash etc cos it sends them completely bonkers. My lot are more sensitive to this stuff than the norm, but may be worth a look?

[Skramble]

Agree more physical stimulation could help. Careful what signals you give too, if you are hyper and constantly multitasking around them it will be hard for them to chill.

Daydreaming is fine and good for relaxing, activities like board games, colouring, dressing dollies, jigsaws and other table top type games are perhaps middle ground activities.

Depending on age don't expect to much concentration for to long. Better to stop an activity before they are bored and start mucking about and getting out of hand. It can be hard to gauge this but sometimes better to intecept earlier and redirectto something else.

[KatieDD]

I've never given them orange squash until they stopped drinking water, aged 8, 6 and 4 btw.
The older one dilly dally's a lot eaily distracted but then when I try to hurry her along gets utterly heart broken and very stressed and tearful.
They can't have sweets because of their teeth so I let them have a bit of chocolate on a Friday as long as they go to the park for an hour otherwise they are up the wall until 10pm

[gigglewitch]

so giggle's thoughts go nowhere then
what's the verdict at school?
my dses are so worn out by school that they have no hope at all of concentrating on much at home, and have a mad half-hour at precisely 6:30pm - at which point they are ushered to the bath

[KatieDD]

Schools tricky, the little one seems to have so much energy left after school, I'm shocked, the other two were wiped out by reception
The eldest and middle one basically get the same school report I got, ie if she could stop chatting she'd do 100 times better lol
I'm wondering if getting them up earlier and putting them to bed earlier too might be a plan, noticed you start baths at 6.30, it's more like 7.30pm here.

[gigglewitch]

only 6.30 baths cos
1 - there are three of them [like you]
2 - they go bonkers at exactly this time
3 - if we left it any later they'd be awake til 9. Gawd, I couldn't have that. My small amount of remaining sanity would be at severe risk

[SheSellsSeashellsByTheSeashore]

More activities definately. My dd1 is hyper to say the least, I go crazy when dancing is on holiday.

Whats yoga bug? dd might like that.