| Are they having
fun or fighting again? |
Benefits of Asking, "What's In
Your Balloon?"
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At a party I
attended, I watched as my children played with the balloons they received
in their party pack. I can see their look of excitement as they
throw a balloon up into the air. The fan in the hall was blowing the
balloon off course and I can feel their anticipation; "Where it's
going to land?", Who is going to catch it this time?" You
know they are having such fun with the other kids when you have to shout
while talking to the hostess.
My children can have such a great time when playing together but often,
they will be fighting over who play with what and it always ended with the
young one crying as she always want to play with big brother's choice; and
he is not giving in. At moments like this, instead of getting and
staying upset, what else can you do?
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- Saying this beats shouting, "Stop
It. You are making me angry". Remember the saying,
Monkey see, monkey do". If you do not change the way
you handle your anger, your children will grow up learning that it is
alright to show their anger when they are upset because their Mummy
does that too.
- Your children will be reminded that they
can have fun playing with one another instead of fighting.
- They learn that their misbehavior will
affect others.
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| "What's In
Your Balloon?" Solution
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Try reminding them
about the time they enjoyed playing the balloon together. Tell them
to imagine that they have put something nasty in the balloon and it will
make it so heavy that it will burst open splattering the gooey stuff all
over the place and on anyone close by when it hit the floor. Ask
them if they would like to play with a balloon like that. Tell them
that when they make each other upset fighting over toys, they are actually
throwing up a nasty balloon. And what happens when the gooey stuff
splattered on Mummy? Mummy gets upset too.
Then, the next time when they start again while playing, all you have to
do is ask them, "What's In Your Balloon? Please think before
throwing it up".
If they persist, stop what they are playing
with and tell them that they can only play once they have their
"Balloon" right.
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| So, what if your
children are too young to understand or accept metaphors?
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Making Selection of Toys Fun
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- Create something like the "Wheel of
Fortune".
- Cut out pictures of the toys you have
from the packing boxes or write it on cardboard from empty boxes that
will fit onto the slot of your "Wheel of Fortune".
- If your children fight over a toy, then
place picture of this toy and toys of their second preferences on the
"Wheel of Fortune".
- Tell each one of them to spin board and
that they will have to play with whatever the needle points to.
- To discourage them from frequently
squabbling and decide for themselves over spinning the "Wheel of
Fortune", add penalties to the "Wheel of Fortune", that
will mean that they may have to do something else other than playing
the toys they want to play with.
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