What We Learn |
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First, they improve their self-esteem. When children are constantly being told negatives like “no” or “can’t,” their self-esteem suffers. With the implementation of positive discipline techniques, children’s self-esteem benefits. They’re also learning self-discipline. As children are being taught to clean up, they are learning to put things away if they want to bring something else out. They’re also learning to control their behavior. Children can easily get overwhelmed with activities and the number of items to use. Controlling themselves to not bring out every possible toy is part of learning from positive discipline. |
Supply List |
Plastic containers (shoe box size)
Index cards
Markers
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How-To |
Take several clear, plastic containers and tape an index card to one end of the container indicating the box’s contents. For instance, all of the child’s dinosaur toys will go in a container marked “dinosaurs.” Do the same with all of the children’s toys so there are containers for Lego’s, balls, building blocks, toy cars, etc.
In addition to writing the contents on the index card, tape a sample of the toy to the index card. This will help younger kids to identify the box’s contents, even if they can’t read yet.
When the kids are playing with the toys in a container, try to set limits on how many items that can be used at one time. They don’t necessarily need to dump out all of the toys in the container if they’re intending only to play with one toy from the box.
If the children are done with one set of toys and want to move onto the next set of toys, remind them to return the toys to the container before moving onto the next set of toys.
Provide an opportunity for children to be motivated to clean up by giving them something to do. For instance, when they are done playing, you can say, “When you clean up the Legos, you can go outside.”
Whether you’re caring for one child or several children, it’s important each child take responsibility for his or her own belongings and to learn self-help skills. When caring for children with special needs, it’s important to remember the ideas of reinforcing the positive, being consistent and setting clear limits.
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