How to Make a Good Choice Ticket for Kids

Most parents have discovered how ineffective yelling, begging and pleading are for persuading their children to do what they've been asked to do. Replacing this form of discipline with positive reinforcement might improve your child's behavior. Good choice tickets are one way to make the switch to positive reinforcement.

  1. Positive Reinforcement

    • Positive reinforcement focuses on the good acts your child does rather than only pointing out bad acts. The idea is to point out to your child when he's behaving himself or when he does something nice for someone else. You should praise and compliment your child in these cases. When your child is given the opportunity to be proud of himself, he might be more likely to repeat those behaviors.

    Good Choice Tickets

    • Good choice tickets align with the positive reinforcement notion of discipline because they are used as a reward when your child is making good choices. Make your good choice tickets any way you want. You might design tickets on your computer and print them on colored paper or simply write "I Made A Good Choice" on small slips of paper. Get your child in on the action by letting him make and cut out the good choice tickets you'll use so he's invested in the discipline changes.

    Tips for Use

    • Using your good choice tickets is as simple as awarding your child a ticket when you catch him being good. Perhaps you could give him a ticket when he eats his dinner without complaining or when he helps his sister pick up her toys. Give your child a bigger reward when he gets a certain number of good choice tickets. You might award him with a trip to the movies or an extra half hour of playtime before bed once he's received 10, 15 or 20 tickets. Choose a reward that will motivate your child to work hard toward earning good choice tickets and your discipline system will be more effective, HealthyChildren.org notes.

    Considerations

    • Don't give your child a good choice ticket for every little act or he'll start to expect a ticket every time he behaves himself. Instead, reserve the tickets for big moments such as cleaning up without being asked or completing homework without an argument. You want to reinforce these types of behaviors because they are a larger part of your day than smaller things such as when your child puts his socks in the hamper or closes the lid on the toilet. Don't take tickets away when your child isn't behaving. Taking the tickets away can cause your child to lose motivation to behave because he'll get frustrated and upset that something he worked hard for is gone, according to KidsHealth.

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