It would be downright un-Christian for me not to share this little secret that I just discovered!
I know from talking to a lot of other moms, that distraction can be a problem when it comes to keeping our sons on task. I don’t know what it is…but I have found the most SIMPLE solution, at least for my son, that I can’t believe it works!
Prior to this solution, I would give my son a task (clean your room). I even have a chore chart hanging on the wall with everyone’s chores written down in case they forget. Simple enough, I thought.
Yet, day after day, I would go check in after sometimes more than an hour, and I would find him in what looked like a state of confusion. His room still a mess, he would be standing in the middle of it, just sort of gazing around, like he couldn’t remember why he was there. I would ask the inevitable, “What have you been doing for an hour?!” And he honestly wasn’t sure!
It was so frustrating…especially since I could tell he wasn’t deliberately being defiant. I got upset, then he got upset, and it was this constant cycle.
UNTIL NOW…are you ready?
The list had to be IN HIS HAND.
Don’t ask why…I don’t know. But I do know that there is something mysteriously true about brain/hand connections. (He is a heavy “left-brained”…er, I think…he’s a very gifted artist-in-the-making 😉
I just happened the other day to write his daily list on a piece of paper and hand it to him. He tore off like he was on a mission. I’ve never seen him walk so purposeful, so focused! I stood there in disbelief. He had all of his chores done in about 1 1/2 hours!
Oh, and the chores need to have boxes for him to check off out beside them.
“A list? That’s all you needed, all this time?” “Yes ma’am”, he said smiling.
Go figure…and praise God!
4 comments
That makes sense to me, even without having any boys of my own.
My old pastor’s son (when I was much younger) needed exactly that. It was as though having that scrap of paper in his hand, even if he didn’t look at it, helped him to grasp in his head what he needed to do – touching something for real connected something in his brain.
I am so glad you found something to help your son keep pressing on in cleaning, no matter how simple! 😀
That’s great! I’m really happy for you, Mrs. Crawford. I know exactly what you’re going through, because my mom used to be driven crazy trying to keep me on task, and she still is because now she has my younger brother to deal with. 🙂
This actually makes perfect sense to me. lol 🙂 I guess that’s because I’m closer to your son’s age than to yours. It’s so easy to forget everything that you have to do, but if you have a list to check off, it becomes so easy to accomplish everything you need to! 🙂
Um, I don’t think it’s just boys!
I guess this is why the Maxwells (Managers of Their Chores)have the clip-on chores packs? And you have to move each card after you get it done?
Oh yes, I have to have my list in my hand as well. (I use a notebook instead, though.)
Many times when we’re away from home and I can’t make a list, I break down a job for my son into one-or two-step chunks, have him repeat them back to me, and then check back with me after that for the next steps.
Love your blog!