Being a kid can be a pretty big deal and getting your your child to listen can be a bigger deal. Every kid is completely different which means each will have different incentives that work and don’t work. Trust me, I have tried many and I think I found one that is fun, interactive and does it’s job. I think being a parent sometimes we think we know it all when sometimes what we are missing is one thing. Listening to our children. Don’t get me wrong, it can be hard at times. Waking up each day, rushing to get out of the door, work, school, every day afternoon activities, cooking supper and getting ready for bed is enough on it’s own. Dealing with a child who might not listen, talks back or whatever else on top of your daily regime can make you feel like you want to pull all of your hair out. The key is finding that button on your kid.
I don’t know what you do to get your child to listen, but I think when you start giving things like gifts and money you could possibly send them the wrong message. See I am not a professional. I have a 12 year old who is amazing, bright, fun & energetic. There are times when he get’s punished and things get taken from him because he is a normal 12 year old boy.
But with all that comes along with having kids I wouldn’t trade all of up’s and down’s for anything in the world. I get to teach my son right from wrong, good from bad, fake from real, how to be a nice person, how not to be selfish and so much more. It’s my favorite thing about my life. I get to see this little mini me ( and boy is he just like me) grow up into a beautiful young man.
So, back to this post. I wanted to share with you what works in our house. We keep a jar out filled with marshmallows. If something get’s taken away he can earn it back by filling up the empty jar with marshmallows. Wanna know the best treat? When he is done filling the jar up, the marshmallows are his to keep. I am not sure if that is what he looks forward to or getting back what he was punished from!
All I am saying is it’s fun. Make it a fun activity for you kid. Every time they do something kind, nice, use their manners, do things with out being told or anything else positive then you can tell them to add however many marshmallows that you think they earned! Believe it or not, it works!
P.S. You can use anything you would like to fill the jar up. I like marshmallows because you can see progress fairly quick. Don’t forget kids are impatient, if something takes to long to happen they will get distracted.
I hope you have a great day and see you tomorrow in the next post!
What do you so in your home to get your kids to listen?
* I started a new website and the only hint I will tell you is it’s going to be fun for everyone
*I will be doing a Mardi Gras round up post Tuesday
*I was featured on 30 minute crafts
*My latest post for FAVE CRAFTS is up HERE.
Hey love! I loved your post. I was just wondering what size jar you use? And also about how long it takes him to fill it back up? Daily? Weekly? Once the marshmallows are in the jar are they taken back out for bad behavior? Or does the jar only accumulate? This post spoke to me for my 4 year old. He loves marshmallows and is definitely motivated by rewards. Any additional advice would be very appreciated! Thank you!
Hey Julie! I used a normal size mason jar. Of course when my son would do good things wether it was using manners or just picking up his things I would give him some! If his behavior was bad I would take some out depending on what he did. If he is 4 you would want to start with a small jar. Don’t make it a long time to fill it up because sometimes when it takes too long it’s a turn off. Hope this helps! Jade