Every parent, caregiver or teacher understands the challenge of trying to motivate kids to accomplish daily tasks, especially when they’re caught up in their own world. Those moments can easily feel like a power game or turn into the ultimate test of everyone’s patience.
Each child is different and so too are their levels of self-motivation and self-regulation. However, no matter their personality or age, they all benefit greatly from being shown how to set goals, focus, follow through and stay on task.
So how can you help your kid(s) to help themselves? Here are a few tips:
- Use technology – there are times when technology can be put to good use in helping kids learn valuable skills such as time management, goal setting and managing responsibilities. Edutainment apps such as KazuTime, which puts the fun into getting things done, introduces kids to the concept of time and coaches time management with help of time champions, Kazu and his friends who accompany the child throughout a set task. The app is aimed at kids aged 3 to 8 and presents a playful way to doing chores, completing homework on time or getting ready for preschool/school without fuss or drama.
- Break things down into smaller steps – one of the main reasons that kids find it difficult to accomplish goals is that the whole can seem too overwhelming. If a child’s bedroom is messy, telling them to “clean up your room” is too general and may seem impossible to them. Help them by breaking it down into more manageable tasks, such as first picking up their plush toys, then their books, followed by clothes, etc. KazuTime is perfectly suited to helping you do just that and enables you to break down goals into smaller tasks with the added benefit of helping kids to gauge and manage the time it takes to complete them.
- Make it fun – one of the greatest ways to help kids to do things that they don’t necessarily want to do is to teach them to make it more fun. Turn an unpleasant task into a game, such as racing against the clock to see how many clothes they can fold in a minute, how many toys they can put away or how many wagon loads of leaves they can rake up. With KazuTime, kids interact with Kazu, a cute puppy, or a number of his friends, who encourage them to find in even the most mundane task. A valuable life skill to learn indeed!
- Establish routines – by establishing routines, children always know what is expected of them and when. This provides them with structure, which in turn makes them feel more secure and in control. KazuTime is a powerful tool to use to introduce and establish routines that help kids to develop good habits and a sense of time and place.
- Pick your battles – sometimes it’s ok to admit defeat. If a child is stressed out, overly tired or simply digging their heels in, finding something they can actually do successfully will be the best way move on. Leave the lesson for another day when they may be more receptive or in a more cooperative frame of mind.
We hope these small tips are helpful to you. Contact us with any questions that you may have.