Why is it so difficult to get my child(ren) to _________________________
Sound familiar? All of these are called transitions. You are asking or telling your child to stop one activity and move on to another. As a classroom teacher, I had to plan my transitions very carefully. In fact, I teach my college students that planning for transitions is just as important as planning a lesson.
Many parents think that they simply should be able to tell their child that it’s time to do something or change an activity. Then the child should comply. For most parents and children, it’s not this easy. In fact, children need to be taught how to transition. As a teacher, I taught my students how to transition explicitly with modeling and practice.
If you feel like it takes forever or turns into a battle when you ask your children to stop one activity and do another, keep these in mind.
Here are some ideas to try that I’ve learned as a parent and teacher.
My next newsletter will focus on behavior management plans. If you need more than the bullet points about transitions, behavior plans can be effective for children of almost every age. They can also help with other challenging situations you may find yourself in.
If you want to talk further, please contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or (727) 871-3068.
Until next time,
Miriam
As we start 2016, I want to share the Wholehearted Parenting Manifesto by Brene’ Brown with you. It empowers and reminds me to how I want to parent.
This manifesto urges us to be vulnerable, open, and present. It challenges us to teach our children through our actions (both the accomplishments and mistakes). Most of all, we can make sure our children truly feel seen and heard as we learn together.
We are so committed to be the best parents possible and this can lead us to put an incredible amount of pressure on ourselves to be perfect and follow all the “expert” advice. We may also feel that we are the only ones who struggle.
Here’s to a year to try our best, be supportive of each other, be vulnerable, have fun with our children, be honest, and ask for help when we need it.
This is the beginning of a series of newsletters written to help families navigate common challenges. I will write from the perspective of a parent and teacher. I hope many of these newsletters will help you in your everyday journey as a parent.
Click here to read the Wholehearted Parenting Manifesto to see if it resonates with you. It has a permanent home on my refrigerator and you may want to do the same.
If you want to talk further, please contact me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call (727) 871-3068.
Until next time,
Miriam