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Catch
Your Child Doing Something Right
Immediate
praise for work well done is very motivating. It's important
to catch your children doing something right. Not only do
you want to affirm behavior but also you want to encourage
the character development that you observe. Use words like,
"You are becoming very cooperative." Or, "I
like the way you are learning to be kind." Praise goes
a long way to build good habits.
When my
(Joanne) son Timothy was four years old, we had a problem
with him complaining at mealtimes. No matter what I served,
he moaned. So I created a "Good Attitude at Mealtime"
chart. It wasn't fancy or elaborate, just a piece of construction
paper. I told him that when he saw what was for the meal,
he could either say something positive or say nothing at all.
If he
did this then he'd get a star on his chart. If he complained,
no star that meal. I drew cute little stars with different
colors. I put faces on them and hats. Timmy loved it. He had
so much fun with his chart that he would eagerly ask what
was for each meal, just so he could respond rightly and get
a new and different star. I told him that if he got 12 stars,
I would give him a treat. The star chart helped us break the
bad habit of complaining.
Look for
ways to praise your children whenever possible. Don't just
focus on a child's weaknesses. Praise goes a long way to develop
a positive attitude in our kids about the changes they need
to make. Remember to not just focus on behavior though. Tell
kids what you like about the character they're demonstrating
through those positive behaviors.
This idea
was taken from the tape series, "Eight Secrets to Highly
Effective Parenting," by Dr. Scott Turansky and Joanne
Miller, RN, BSN.
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