Monday 12 October 2015

Fostering Independence

My guest blogger this time is Ms. Kelsey Meyers from Austin Texas

Four ways to make your bathroom a place kids want to be
By Ty Schmidt
There’s only so much you can learn from the Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood jingles about brushing your teeth and stopping to go potty right away. Sure, the mind of a toddler is hard-wired to pick up concepts more efficiently when they are attached to a catchy tune, but that’s just the first step toward making positive behaviors stick. The second can’t be taught by a television or a tablet. It needs to be practiced and reinforced in the home.
While a good song may lay a solid foundation for parents to draw upon, putting those well-intentioned lyrics into action requires more than a good singing voice. It requires patience, planning and commitment from parents. One way to make things easier is to find methods of fostering independence doing everyday tasks by working with the space at hand to make it one that encourages understanding as well as cognitive growth and development.
A good place to start is the bathroom, where there is a lot you can do to help your tot learn to tend to and care for the simplest and simultaneously some of the most important components of personal hygiene.
Many parents know there is a fine line between indulging too much and not enough in the life of a small child. (Temper tantrums anyone?) But there are ways (big and small) to integrate kid-friendly design elements into any bathroom to make it a more comfortable space for the little ones. Here are a few of our favorites:
First things first. One of the most important developmental milestones for children and parents to overcome is potty training. Making that process as pain free as possible is easier for some families than others, which is to be expected and completely normal. But there are things, like a proper potty step stool, that can make the process a bit more bearable.
Wash your hands. Being able to reach the sink may pose another challenge for younger children, which makes having a stool (which can be the same as the one you use for getting to the toilet, but doesn’t have to be) accessible invaluable to the cleanly-minded child. Beyond that, there are accessories you can purchase for your faucet that extend the water to a kid-friendly distance, as well as creative ways to make your own at home.
Go bold. Assuming you don’t already have an unspoken connection to the subtle spa-like hues in your bathroom, make it a space your children are likely to feel connected to instead. Think bright and vibrant primary colors on the walls, as well as complimentary accents throughout. This is the place to embrace your inner child. Always wanted a Minnie Mouse-themed bathroom? Now is your chance!
                                          Via Furni Kidz

Take it down. Frustration is one of the most common spark plugs for a tantrum, and therefore is something to be avoided at all costs in the bathroom. Help make it a bit more toddler-ific by bringing necessities, like towels and washcloths, down to their level. Be careful with things like soaps and scrubs, though, at least while the kids are younger.

                                          Via Pop Sugar

Life’s little reminders. There can never be too many. Remember, the bathroom is a place you want your child to feel collected and comfortable, but that doesn’t mean letting things go. Integrating little reminders into the décor can help little minds recall the next step in their bathroom process (like washing their hands, for example).


Ty writes about all things home décor for Modernize.com.  Modernize is where you come to get inspired, see what's possible, and connect with a professional who will make your dream home a reality.

17 comments:

Hema Mittal said...

Thank you ma'am for sharing the blog. Indeed, the most challenging and important part of a child's grooming and growing is to get him/her potty trained. The ways mentioned will help foster the feeling of independence in children to do their daily routines by providing appropriate environment.

Unknown said...

Tons of thanks mam for sharing such a important blog about childrens will be independent to follow their regular routine work.

Unknown said...

Thanking you so much for sharing the blog....how a child can be independent frm the daily work, as washing hands again n again keep them hygiene always, potty trainied.... N ofcourse tantrums they do... As they r kids...
From:
PJK wagholi, pune

Unknown said...

Ma'am thank you for sharing such a important blog with us ,it is very important to make the child independent
and to teach them about personal hygiene. From Neetu Gupta Pjk Wagholi

Unknown said...

Ma'am thank you for sharing such a important blog with us ,it is very important to make the child independent
and to teach them about personal hygiene. From Neetu Gupta Pjk Wagholi

Unknown said...

Ma'am thank you for sharing such a important blog with us ,it is very important to make the child independent
and to teach them about personal hygiene. From Neetu Gupta Pjk Wagholi

Unknown said...

Thanks Mam for sharing thoughts on things that parents does every day, but not everyone thinks how it could be improved. This blog helped me realise that along with making beautiful bathroom, we should make sure that it should be easy to use and more connected to kids.
PIE student
PJK, wagholi, Pune

Unknown said...

I Ms. Manisha Dhingra teacher from Pjk, Wagholi would like to thank you Ma'am for sharing such a important blog with us about how children can be independent to follow their daily routine. We should teach them the value of personal hygiene. Which is very important for our little ones.

Rana said...

Thank you mam for sharing such a nice and very important blog for making our children independent. ... my son is studying in PJK wagholi and he will love to have the bathroom given in the picture of this blog .....

Mrs. Rana
Mother of a student in
PJK wagholi

Charu said...

Respected Ma'am.
Thank you for sharing informative blog with us. This can be very good learning for the child because independence of child in personal hygiene is very important to keep them healthy and fit.
Ms. Charu Gupta
Podar Jumbo Kids
Wagholi

Unknown said...

Respected Madam,
Thankyou so much for sharing valuable information with us. It will be very helpful in providing learning to children on personal hygiene so as to keep them healthy.

Thankyou.
Shubhi Chhabra,
Podar Jumbo Kids
Wagholi

Unknown said...

Respected Madam,
Thankyou so much for sharing valuable information with us. It will be very helpful in providing learning to children on personal hygiene so as to keep them healthy.

Thankyou.
Shubhi Chhabra,
Podar Jumbo Kids
Wagholi

Unknown said...

Thank you mam for sharing such a wonderful and interesting blog with us. The most important and also challenging thing for parents in child ' s grooming is to get them potty trained. The ways which are mentioned above will be help the child to foster the feeling of independance to do their daily routine. Ms Meera Sajish PJK Wagholi

Unknown said...

I Ms. Janice Gomes teacher with PJK Plus Vile Parle thank you ma'am for sharing such a wonderful blog, which says to inculcate the values of hygiene in our kids from the time they are a toddler. Instead of we ourselves getting angry on them to get the things right, we need to handle kids in a different way like singing out to them to get what you want them to do, playing games with them etc. which will in turn make them independent in their life.

Sejal Dave said...

I Sejal Dave teacher @PJK Baramati personally think that teaching children to groom themselves and have proper hygiene is tricky but above blog will surely help us...
Thanks mam for sharing informative blog.

Farida Lokhandwala said...

This article showcases the worth of using "Human Science" in all that you do. As adults we tend to apply our sensitivity and empathy on larger tasks of life which one may do it for their own or others convenience.
But for children, if the same thought process- human science if applied in their own little ways by teacher, parents and care givers, the world , the school, the home will be a happier and a more comfortable place for our young children.

PJK Vadgaon said...

Thank-you Ma'am for sharing blog on Fostering Independence and if the child is independent in daily activities ,they will enjoy learning and be more comfortable in daily routines.