By 
You worry about your children all the time. You think they’re not getting enough nutrients from what they eat. At school, you fear that they’re too active and could get injured. You remind them about staying safe all the time, but you think your children never listen. For instance, if you tell them always to drink water, they tend to ignore it. Without sufficient clean drinking water from Berkey water systems, they might be dehydrated.
Telling them to drink clean water and bring a bottle of water wherever they go could be challenging. These tips will help make your reminders more effective.
Be gentle in your reminders
Don’t scream to your children if you want them to follow what you want. If you shout at them, they might get angry and forget what you said. They will only remember how they felt when you said these reminders. Try to be gentler in your reminders. Talk to them first and allow them to listen before you talk. You should also come closer to them when you speak instead of shouting from afar. You can scream all you want, but it works for anything to change behavior. It could even adversely impact your relationship with them.
Offer a reward and punishment system
Another way to motivate hot children to listen to you is by rewarding positive behavior. Make them feel excited following these reminders by giving them something they can enjoy. Of course, the rewards have to be commensurate to the behavior shown. Conversely, a punishment system might also work. Let them know that failure to follow the rules could have consequences. Just like the rewards, these punishments shouldn’t be severe. Otherwise, they will associate the reminder with a terrible memory. You don’t want to use these systems all the time, but they could be effective initially.
Explain the reasons
Regardless of the nature of these reminders, you have to offer a clear explanation. You can’t tell them to do something for the sake of doing it. They will wonder why you ask them to sleep early at night or stop playing video games. Understanding the benefits of doing the right thing will make it easier for your children to follow it. Telling them to obey something they don’t understand will also make them less critical in life. It promotes laziness and the inability to question authority. You don’t want to raise children who can never speak up about anything. They have to be empowered to do what’s right and question things that don’t seem right.
Leave some notes
This strategy isn’t only effective. It’s also heartwarming. Imagine if you left notes on your children’s lunchboxes, and they saw the note before eating. They will think about you, and thank you for the reminder. You can also send them a text message as a reminder of why they always forget. Make sure that these messages are lighthearted and would make them want to do what you say. Use emojis and carefully select the words. Even in a text message, your children will feel that you’re screaming if you don’t use the appropriate reminders.
Open the lines of communication at home
Your children always forget to follow what you say because they don’t listen to what you say at all. You might be angry that they ignore you, but it also has something to do with the relationship you have with them. If there’s no open line of communication at home, everyone will just ignore each other. You don’t listen to their feelings, and they won’t listen to your reminders. Change this behavior, and make sure that everyone can openly discuss their feelings with one another. Don’t wait until your children become more comfortable telling their secrets to the people they don’t know over you.
Use words they can understand
There are instances when your children don’t necessarily want to ignore what you said. They also didn’t intend to forget your reminders. They fail to do what he said because they didn’t even understand your word choices in the first place. Make sure that your reminders are short and concise. They will remember everything that you said if it’s clear to them. You should also allow them to ask questions if they didn’t understand anything than to assume that the information is clear.
Let them know there’s a choice
Another reason your children don’t like listening to your reminders is that they feel like you’re only forcing them to do what you want. You have to give them a choice and realize the possible consequences if they don’t use the right thing. For instance, if they decided to eat unhealthy foods, they might end up getting sick. Suffering these consequences will make them do the right thing next time. It’s a learning experience for them.
When setting rules, you should also allow your children to be involved in the process. Make them realize that it’s not your rules, but theirs. They agreed to these rules, so they have to follow.
Make it fun
If you want to tell your children to stay healthy and safe, you can show them some fun videos. They would remember these things if they can associate them with what they saw. You can also have some games involving the entire family, and these games should have something to do with the things you want them to remember.
Asking your children to listen to you and follow what you say could be challenging. There are times when they will gladly obey, but there are instances when they won’t. Despite the challenge, you have to be consistent. You know that reminding them to stay healthy and safe will give you peace of mind. You won’t always be there to ensure that they do the right thing. You can at least hope that your reminders are good enough for them to do what’s right.
Comments