baby sitter blues

NO AMOUNT OF MONEY IS WORTH IT!

When children are: ■ missing a parent ■ bored ■ tired ■ wanting attention ■ overly excited ■ play too long ■ frustrated ■ used to getting their way ■ near bedtime

When the baby sitter: ■ expects too much from young children ■ doesn’t watch children closely ■ is inconsistent with rules ■ lets situations escalate instead of stepping in

Praise good behavior. Act quickly to help a child losing control. Warn a child in advance that bedtime is coming. USE “MAGIC” TRICKS!

#1. Distraction  Interrupt the sad or unpleasant behavior.  Use a toy, story, or song to distract a child’s attention from something unpleasant. Example: When Tami’s mother left, Tami began to cry. Tami’s babysitter picked up Tami’s stuffed bear and sang while she made the bear dance. Tami forgot about her mother leaving.

#2. Giving Choices  Offer the child acceptable choices while insisting on what needs to be done. Example: “You need to give the ball back to Robbie. Would you like me to hand Robbie the ball or would you like to?”

#3. Making a Game  Turn something that needs to be done into a game. Example: “ You pick up your toys on one side of the room, and I’ll pick up the toys on the other side and we’ll see who gets done first.”

#4. When… Then Promise something the child wants to do after the child does something he/she does not want to do. Example: “ When you put on your pajamas, then we’ll play Candyland.”

#5. Take a Break / “TIME OUT” This is the best trick anytime violence or aggression is involved. Taking a break gives child a chance to stop and think about their behavior. Break time should be short- a minute for every year of the child’s age. *Do not use this magic trick for children under 2. It helps to separate the child from other children. Never put kids in the dark. After the “time out” – start over with a clean slate!