Email of the Day: I Found an Easy Way to Keep My Child Focused

My son was a 7-year-old active, distracted little boy who loved to play. He often forgot to do things, so instead of yelling or getting annoyed, I made it a game. It was amazing what could be accomplished: anything from “I bet you can’t brush your teeth faster than I can” to “If you put on your shoes in 60 seconds, I’ll spin in circles three times.” It worked really well.

However, there was one thing he just couldn’t seem to nail down. When he left his room, he was supposed to shut the door so our cat wouldn’t get in there. He just could not remember to do that, and I got annoyed with myself, saying “Did you shut the door?”

One day I said to him “I’ve made up a song and I want you to sing it when you come down the stairs. Here it goes: Stairs, stairs, up and down; if I don’t shut the door my mommy will frown.’” We sang it together in a ring-around-the-rosie type of rhythm over and over and danced and sang. I said “Okay, you sing this song every time you come downstairs and I bet you won’t forget!” It worked like a charm.

So, if there are tasks you want your little kids to do, put them to music!

Sandra

I Found an Easy Way to Keep My Child Focused