Make a good choice.
Please think about what you’re doing.
That was not a good choice.
Please choose a different activity, or I will choose one for you.
If you’re a mom of a toddler (maybe if you’re just a mom), you probably say these… multiple times a day. Part of our jobs as parents (or teachers) is to help kids choose well. Not just choosing well when we are around them but to make good choices when they are with their peers or out in the world or when no one is watching. So what does that look like? How do we start?
I have a little guy who struggles with making good choices (don’t we all, really?). In our Bible class at church (as well as at home), we talk about good and bad choices and we like to sort them. I had made a set of pictures a long time ago but decided we needed some new ones. So I made this (Click here if you would like a set). I print them out on cardstock and laminate them. You can decide how to sort them:
Poster Board with Velcro
Baskets
Or really anything else.
We look at each picture and talk about what is happening and then about why it is a good or a bad choice. Of course, you and I both know that it’s easy to decide the good and bad choices on paper – it’s harder when we get to the practical application! Hopefully, though it helps to plant good seeds in his little mind. Hopefully, it helps to plant good seeds in my own mind as well!
God bless you and your toddler with good choices this week.
Wattsup With Kids 