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Dump Elf on the Shelf: 3 steps to maintain positive behaviors all year round

Dump Elf on the Shelf: 3 steps to maintain positive behaviors all year round

Why do we focus on the good behavior of children at the end of the year? One month? Seriously? It’s not productive. It’s insulting. Dump the “Elf on the Shelf” and do something that will encourage good behaviors all year long. Besides, it’s creepy to tell your child that an elf is watching them all day in their home.

The one thing experts agree on in parenting it’s that children need consistency. Consistency over the year is better than short bursts of consistency during one month.

Here are 3 steps that will maintain positive behaviors in our children all year long.

Use chore charts (every month)

Chore charts are a miracle tool for parents. It takes guesswork out of parenting. Chore charts help everyone in the family know who is responsible for chores or tasks. This clears ups confusion. Using a chore chart every month for specific tasks will also serve as a journal for your child’s behavior. Parents should review the chore charts every week or month depending on the child. Review the positive things and also areas where improvement is needed.

We have free downloadable Chore Charts with different themes to help appeal to your child.

DOWNLOAD: CHORE CHARTS

Document success

After each month, review what your child did well. If they cleaned their room, use your phone or camera to take a picture. Picture are worth a thousand words and will provide your child with a positive memory with you. This will be a powerful reminder for them in the future of what they did well. Pictures are easy to take and easy to share. Your child (and you) will enjoy reviewing these positive moments later in the year. In your review in December you can review the chore charts and the successes throughout the year.

Connect positive behaviors to gifts

In December, review all the chore charts and pictures you have taken with your child. It will be fun to review all the positive things they have done throughout the year. It will also provide you with an instant scrapbook with a picture of your child for every month that year. You can then connect their positive behaviors to holiday gifts. The connection between behaviors and reward will be more profound. They will also learn that some rewards take a lot of time and work to achieve. It is a great time to talk to them about delayed gratification as well.

You can also be creative and use the pictures throughout the year to decorate for the holidays.

This is something that any parent can start in 2016. I helpful hint to help children keep the positive behaviors of the holiday season with them all year round.