Search Results for: blog teach children delayed gratification

Mastering the Fine Art of Delayed Gratification

My 8-year-old has the patience of… well, an 8-year-old. Actually, on many days her ability to wait without whining or complaining is more on par with a 4-year-old. She’d kill me if she knew I was comparing her to a preschooler.  Then again, I’ll probably die first from having to tolerate her incessant bellyaching each time she is asked to keep her composure while waiting for whatever it is she wants right NOW! And by now, she means the millisecond her request leaves her lips. During my daughter’s last well child check-up I discussed the issue of delayed gratification with … Continue reading →

Free Websites that Teach Your Kids about Money

Teaching kids about money, where it comes from, how to make it grow and how to use it responsibly is one of those things that many of us mean to get around to doing, but don’t often seem to complete. In fact, money lessons should never really come to an end. As society, the economy and technology changes, it is important for us all to keep up, and pass on the skills, knowledge and advice to our children. Fortunately, we don’t have to do this alone. There are a few really good websites out there that will help us teach … Continue reading →

Teach Children Delayed Gratification

Not long ago I was listening to Dr Laura on Sirius satellite radio and she was talking about a study involving small children and self control. She explained that four-year-olds were given a marshmallow and told that they had a choice: They could eat the marshmallow now when the adults left the room or wait and get a second marshmallow when they returned. The children who waited for the second marshmallow ultimately did better in life. The children who were not able to control their desire to eat the marshmallow immediately did not fare as well later in life. That … Continue reading →

Social Skills for Young Children

New home learning parents often struggle with the question, “But what about your child’s social skills?” Give this question a little thought, and you’ll realize that any child who lives in a family will learn appropriate social skills. Socializing is something that happens in a family context as well as a school context. If the family happens to have other children, this will be even easier: having siblings tends to introduce the need for cooperation, taking turns, and playing together! If you’re concerned about your young child’s social development, here are a few of the social activities that he or … Continue reading →

The Importance of Not Sharing

It’s one of life’s most important lessons and it doesn’t come easy. Sharing is a challenging concept for many adults to master, so imagine the toll it takes on preschoolers. Most preschool curriculums incorporate a slew of opportunities for four year olds to learn the fine art of sharing.  They are taught to be generous with their possessions so their peers don’t feel left out.  However, is sharing really caring?  Does it really matter if kids share and share alike? Some educators don’t think so. In fact, a growing number of preschools are putting the kibosh on forced sharing in … Continue reading →

The Voice of Elmo is Silenced

Kevin Clash, the voice of Elmo, has resigned from “Sesame Street.” But, it was not entirely voluntarily. (This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.) In case you haven’t been keeping up with the news, Clash has found himself in the middle of not one, but two underage sex scandals. The first case broke a little over a week ago when a 23-year-old man reportedly contacted Sesame Workshop bigwigs with the news that the 52-year-old puppeteer had engaged in a sexual relationship with him when the accuser was only 16. On November 12th, the news came … Continue reading →

I Scream

You will too after reading about a select group of upscale New York parents who thinks the world begins and ends in their little corner of Brooklyn. Yes, Park Slope parents are making national headlines again for yet another insanely absurd interpretation of one of life’s most basic rites of passages. I guess that’s what happens when you have big bucks and don’t have to take four modes of public transportation to three different part-time jobs that barely help you keep a roof over your kids’ heads and food on the table. Rich people problems; where do I sign-up for … Continue reading →

Keep Your Cooling Bill In Check This Summer

Summer is here, and for many of us that means saying goodbye to sweaters and long sleeves and hello to tank tops, shorts, and flip flops. Although summer clothes are fun and on most days keep us fairly cool and comfortable, there are days when it is very hot outside and you need something more than breezy clothes to keep you cool. There are even some days when it can get dangerously hot and keeping cool becomes less about comfort and more about safety. Air conditioners are a very good way to keep your home cool, but they add quite … Continue reading →

Money Lessons For Older Kids

A few days ago I wrote about starting to teach children about money when they’re very small. The important lesson is to delay satisfaction. By not getting everything the child wants when the child wants it, the child learns the value of savings and eventually earning combined with saving. The lesson should carry over later in life and increase the child’s financial good health. Elmo helps to give the lesson a visual so children will better understand. Elmo may be able to help toddlers and preschoolers understand how to save a dollar for something special instead of spending it on … Continue reading →

Curbing the Gimmies

Is your toddler or preschooler having a bad case of the gimmies, where she wants every toy, snack or object in the store. Shopping with a young child can be tough, especially if the child has a melt down whenever he can’t have everything he sees. Here are some techniques for curbing the gimmies and setting limits. The both of you will be happier for it. Delayed gratification is tough for a toddler or preschooler. They don’t have the emotional maturity to handle all of the temptation, and they don’t understand why they shouldn’t have something. One way to cut … Continue reading →