Simplicity can help soothe and relax children and parents, supporting a calm environment that helps support teachable moments. Connectedness to our children can become reduced during busy periods in our lives, as we rush from home to work to after-school activities; as we overcome frustrations with running late and trying to plan dinner while trying to do several other things at the same time. Children struggle to make sense of a world that constantly feels overwhelming like this, they lose their ability to develop self-regulation and spiral quickly into emotional distress, causing even more challenges for parents.
Simplicity in parenting and lifestyle is related to living simply; there are varying levels of dedication and intensity. All changes in environment through simplification have been linked to easier to manage children and improved behaviors. It is worth taking a few simple steps to support a simpler environment, it also has a calmer effect on parents as well.
Have you ever wondered how to get your children to listen to you when give them an instruction the first time, without repeating the instruction, getting angry or yelling?
So many parents get so frustrated with their children when they have to ask five or six times to do something and still don’t get any response let alone any movement towards following the instruction. It becomes increasingly frustrating and parents end up with escalated emotions, yelling and feeling like their blood is boiling. Often parents give up, they become so frustrated and overwhelmed that they complete the task themselves. Therefore providing more reason for their children to not respond to instructions in the future, as they subconsciously believe that their parents will just do it eventually.
Providing effective communication of instructions is imperative to having your children effectively respond to and follow instructions. There are several simple steps to take to build your ability as a parent to use effective communication of instructions that are listened to. The first is to use your child’s name at the start of the instruction, doing this every time you give an instruction. Using details in the instructions that paint a clear picture for your child about where they will find something or what they are do to with the item is imperative as well.
Aimee Christie is an educational consultant who provides Early Learning Consultants support to children and families in a wide range of different situations, using individual plans and strategies to help support developmental and behavioral challenges that a child and their family may be experiencing. Early Learning Consultants believe parents and family have the greatest opportunity to implement these strategies with support to produce an improved outcome for the child.
Find out more at the Early Learning Consultants website or on Facebook.
