John and I have been trying to find ways to motivate Jack to do things we want him to do. You know, subversive stuff like picking up his toys and eating his dinner. His preschool puts happy faces and sad faces on the sheet they send home with him every day and apparently the fear of getting a sad face is a pretty big deal amongst the 3 year olds there. John had the idea of getting a small dry erase board and putting it on the fridge. We drew a happy face on it and if Jack acts up all we have to do is ask him if he wants a sad face. It's worked wonders so far. He especially likes it if you draw a smiley face with teeth.
Sometimes, the simplest solutions are the best ones.
Bereft
3 years ago
I found that keeping it simple and keeping it real worked the best with my son. If I threatened, and he didn't listen, I followed through on my threats (once in a while). The flip side of the coin held true, too - if I *promised* something, I lived up to my promise.
ReplyDeleteI realized early on that kids are not stupid - they're as smart as adults, they just lack experience.