Getting a child out of the game is difficult, especially if you demand his attention to do an activity that he doesn’t feel like, like taking a shower, doing homework or going to bed. In fact, many parents complain because they have to repeat the orders to their children a thousand times, until they lose patience and both end up angry. However, insisting is not the best solution as it exhausts both parent and child.
How to get children to pay attention without having to insist?
1. Turn routines into a game
You can explain to your child that from that moment on, he will be the one who takes control of his time. Agree in advance how long he can play and what time to shower, do homework or go to dinner. Then give him a clock and ask him to set the alarm. When the clock rings, you must stop playing. If he gets it every day, without you having to remind him, at the end of the week he can have a prize.
2. Encourage responsibility
Talk to your child and tell him that since he is getting older, it is time for him to take on more responsibilities. Explain that so that life at home can flow well, it is necessary that each of its members respect certain schedules. Therefore, from then on, it is your responsibility to stick to a schedule for homework, shower, dinner, and bed.
3. Let them bear the consequences
Parents become their children’s agendas or alarm clocks because they don’t let children bear the consequences of their decisions. In this way, the little ones learn to manipulate them because they realize that their behavior does not have any negative effect on them. Therefore, if you don’t want to become a broken record, allow your child to assume the consequences of his actions. For example, if he took a shower later because he was playing, he will have less time to eat dinner and not you can read the story to him before going to bed. This way the child will understand that each act has a consequence.
4. Replace commands with questions
This is a very simple technique that works very well with children who don’t like to be given commands. You just have to ask him: “What do you have to do now?” and let the little one answer. Then you can leave him and if, for example, he sits at the table without taking a shower, ask him if he hasn’t forgotten something and let him take a shower at that time. You can also provide different options and let the child decide, for example, you can ask: “Do you prefer to take a shower now or after dinner?
5. Make a plan
Most people don’t like to be interrupted and told what to do. Children are no exception. For this reason, a good technique is to draw up a schedule in advance, previously agreed upon with your child, so that they know what they should do throughout the week. Ask her how long she needs to shower before dinner and what time she thinks is most convenient to do her homework. Of course, you may have to adjust her expectations a bit, but the idea is to let the child know what is expected of him at all times, so that he is more likely to follow the family routine.
If these techniques do not work, it is important that you find out what is wrong with your child. Challenging behaviors are usually an expression of anger or a problem, they are signs that something is wrong. Maybe your child needs more attention or is overloaded with homework and extracurricular activities.