Saturday, 11 July 2009
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Positive Parenting
I apologize if any parents out there are already well aware of what I am about to say, but forgive me as I have only just worked it out for myself.
I have two kids a boy of 6 and a girl of three and they are extremely hard work. The boy needs constant exercise and the girl needs constant attention. I am physically exhausted from playing running around games and mentally exhausted answering the endless questions of a three year old. If I don't do this there will be trouble, the boy will play with his sister as long as she does everything he tells her, which she seldom does. As a result he plays rough and mean and she ends up in a constant screaming angry state or a constant upset crying state.
But I never knew kids would be interested in the mundaneties of adult life, such as washing the dishes. If you haven't already tried this as a method to keep kids occupied, then I seriously suggest it. I asked my boy if he'd like to help me wash the dishes and he jumped at the chance. I just stood and talked to him, telling him how to do it, what to do and what to look for, I asked him questions to get him to think about what he was doing and why. He thoroughly enjoyed himself and in all the teaching we covered topics such as Archimedes "Eureka" moment and Newtons law of gravity.
This not only allowed for some great father son time but also kept him busy for well over an hour. Sure the washing water needed to be changed a couple of times in the process, but what was achieved far outweighed the physical needs of washing water.
It seems that in these anxious busy lives we lead we often don't allow ourselves time to do these things, sure it's too busy in the morning getting them ready for school, but after school, once they have had their tea there is plenty of opportunities to keep them busy till bed time.
What other ways do you find help keep your children busy before bed time?
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About the Author
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- From: SacredChao@xanga
- Name: Paul
- Location: United Kingdom
- About Me: I get so sick of reading the same information about me in these things so I have to change it regularly to keep myself from getting bored, it means I can type nonesense without having to go to all the trouble of writing blogs and trying to be ceatively sound during the process. So if you can't remember who I said I was previously then I wouldn't worry about it, judge as you must.
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Comments (10)
Good idea! I let my 10 m/o tire herself out by pulling books and DVDs off of shelves.
My kids help me "do" the laundry. They're only 2 and 3, so this mostly consists of putting anything clothing-like (sometimes cloth toys do end up in these piles) into the laundry baskets. And they like to bang on the washer and dryer while I put everything in. :) My 2 year old also loves to pick up and organize his toys (like putting blocks into the appropriate container). Fun times. :)
The 7 & 8 year olds vacuumed the carpets and swept and mopped the floor Thursday. Willingly volunteered. AND didn't do a bad job; what they lacked in 'skill' they made up for in persistance. They do their own laundry with very minimal assistance from me. (I'm not willing to turn them loose with the detergent...) Most nights they'll do dishes if you ask them to, though recently I've been favoring the dishwasher while we go outside for a walk after dinner.
FREE SLAVE LABOR I ALWAYS SAY! J/K Actually when my nephews come over I always put them to work because if I don't then they will find trouble (5 boys under the age of 8) I take buckets of water and make them relay race to pour the water on my plants and trees (that REALLY gets them tired quick- but gets everyone wet which sometimes annoys their mothers) I flood my tile floors with water and everyone slip slides with rags and mops to clean the floor. The 3 year old loves to organize so I have him put the dishes away. We take bats and beat the rug ect. If you keep things like a game kids are always eager to learn.
Children love helping out. It may take you longer to do it with them, but once they learn it can be a great time saver for you. It teaches them to pick up after themselves. All these mundane things, like folding laundry, doing the dishes, dusting, picking up their toys, that you do are a form of play and fun for little ones.
There are lots of artsy crafty things that children can make and do that will keep them busy before bedtime. Make cards for holidays, do origami, color, draw. Playdough for half an hour. Also, your 6 year old can read to the 3 year old or you can read to the both of them. It is a great way to get them to calm down and ease them into getting ready to go to bed.
@filtered_sunlight - if you have powdered detergent you could pre-measure it into little baggies that they could dump out so that you are totally free of helping with their laundry. ...just an idea.
my daughter of 2 and almost a half loves to help out...swiffering. she'd love to wash the dishes.
My almost 2 year old loves to "help" me with all my cleaning. My husband doesn't know how I can be so patient (when each chore takes almost twice as long) but it keeps her occupied. She unloads the dishwasher by handing me one dish at a time, puts laundry in and out of baskets, mops the bathroom floor, holds the dustpan for me when I sweep, etc. She LOVES it!
Folding Laundry. Give them their own basket of their own clothes and let them fold and put away. You'd be surprised how much pride and time they take in that task!
@LiberalArmyWife@xanga - Yeah they love that, along with emptying the drawers, cupboards and toy boxes.
@Morningstarrising@xanga - Yeah they like to put things in piles, usually piles you'll trip over.
@filtered_sunlight - you already got yours well trained.
@kipahni@xanga - Good idea, kids love anything that invloves soaking themselves and anything in the vicinity.
@Suesbooks - It does teach them an awful lot which not only makes our lives easier but better enables them to cope without mammy and daddy doing everything for them.
@aliyagator@xanga - I will try, but like evrything it can't be overdone, kids get bored pretty quick, I only do the washing dishes thing maybe once a week, that way keeps them interested
.@mamajoyjoy - swiffering? I saw a funny add for an invention, it was a baby suit with those soft polishing pads on the knees so baby can polish the floor when they craw
l.@christygraves@xanga - The patience thing is quite easy when the alternative is bedlam
.@mamaseahorse - I can imagine that's so. They do like to pride themselve on being all adultlike.