Be Positive and Praise your children

My 4 year old son volunteered to wash all the dishes and now he's drying them and putting them away!!! I think he wants something! For this kind of behavior, he EARNED praise AND an allowance. An allowance for a chore that I didn't ask him to do. I can see that he actually enjoys doing this. Because his behavior shows hyperactivity, aside from playing sports and going outside (because Houston is freezing right now), something indoors such as chores is perfect for his behavior and I praise it!

One of the techniques used that pertains to behavior was simply praise positive behavior and ignore negative behavior. If you are trying to get a 4 year old to sit down nicely, hands in their laps, and quiet while in doors all day, you would be amazed that the easiest way to do that is to simply say “Oh I really like the way you are sitting there nicely.”  Seriously.  He appreciates this praise like if it was a reward. Kids want to please you! They want you to be proud!  

 If your child puts their plate in the sink – make a big deal about it!  If they get dressed and you notice they have matching socks on tell them they rock! (Anyone else’s child have a thing about wearing mismatched socks?)  Did they use abnormally great handwriting – tell them!  You want to encourage these positive behaviors.  The more you encourage them, the more your child will want to do them.

Make sure you tell your kids how proud you are of them even if they fail at something.  “You were really brave for trying to ride your bike without the training wheels.  I know you will get it next time!”  “I know your art project didn’t come out like you thought it would but I think it looks great!” OR in this instance, "I am so proud of you for washing all the dishes and putting them away like a big boy!" 

Fear of failing is one of the top fears people have.  And the fear of failing can hold people/kids back – they are scared to try new things!  Try to instill in your child that it is ok to fail – as long as you try your hardest.  Failing isn’t something to be embarrassed about – it happens to everyone.  Failing at something doesn’t mean that you are a failure – you just need extra practice.  And it is important to try again! 

There are so many ways to praise your child.  I’m sure that you’ve seen the poster 101 ways to praise a child. Here it is: Use it!