Thank you Candace for inspiring this post. I was so intrigued with Candace's blog about what is your kids currency, that I had to look into it further. On Candace's blog (there is a link on mine MC family circus) she had a quiz to give to your kids to find out what motivates them and I gave it to four of my kids. I didn't give it to my 2-year-old but I'd be interested in what his motivation is! Anyway, I predicted some of my kids answers but a couple of them really surprised me. Kael's motivation was Independence (no surprise there), Kalli's was Food (big surprise there--I thought it would be Peer approval), Aidan's was competition (not surprised) and Aaron's was Adult and Peer Approval. I know that these tests are supposed to be guidelines and they are not absolute but it was very helpful to me find out what they valued (their kid currency.) Interesting stuff. So the following information is mostly for education but I thought it was applicable to our kids in the home too but I found it on the web...this is according to Gene Bedley from his website--I have the web address listed at the end. (thanks again Candace!):
"There is a high correlation between motivation and discipline. In searching for the motivators that move kids to action you might want to consider the following Kid Currency. (Things that kids value.) Contrary to what many believe, kid currency is not just stuff but a number of different things that are really valuable to children. Here's a few we've discovered. If you discover others drop us a line and we'll include your ideas in our National On Line Newsletter, Values in Action!
1-Adult Approval- Many kids love to perform for adults especially the adults they like. It s critical to establish relationships prior to asking kids for various responsibilities. Just because a child is not motivated by you does not mean that adults like a grandfather, uncle, or school custodian could be the currency they re looking for.
2- Peer Time- Some kids are motivated by having the opportunity to hang out with a buddy. If they can play with a friend they ll do anything to earn the time.
3-Independence- Some children are motivated by having the opportunity to play with a special tub of Lego blocks, sand box, Coaster Tycoon, or the wiggle Microphone. They like doing things on their own. You might want to have a number of items in a rental tray that kids can rent from you based on accomplishing their behavior goals.
4-Competition- Many children love competition. I remember the contest we had in running across Orange County. We simply placed the children s picture on a piece of yarn that was glued to a map of Orange County. Kids that are motivated by competition can t wait to see how they re doing in relationship to other class members as their pictures are moved across the yarn on the map.
5-Mystery Bag- Kids like puppets that have hands. If you place a highly prized puppet into a paper bag you ll only have to do it once and the bag will forever be magical and prized as one of the top kid currency.
6-Monkey Animal Transitions -I discovered one of the most powerful kid currency was when I introduced kids to a monkey that taught them how to set goals and behave. I have since learned how really powerful and life changing a stuffed animal can be in transforming negative classroom behavior to positive constructive behavior. Kids will do anything for the monkey where they won t do it for you.
7-Food- If you were a kid what would attract your attention besides food? There s no doubt about it kids are motivated by fish crackers, M&Ms, pretzels, etc. Because food has allergy implications and dependency issues we need to be selective about use of food in the classroom.
If you re not sure what currency your children value, you might want to attend Gene Bedley s National Seminar- Discipline and the Difficult Child, where you ll be introduced to* A Child s Motivators and Reinforcers (a child s preference scale that will guarantee the currency )" So this is the website if you are interested in finding out more. I found it very fascinating. I know for Aidan, he will get all his chores and all his homework done if there is Wii time at the end of it. It is valuable for me to know what motivates my kids because then I can help them be more productive and get their homework and chores done with less yelling and frustration. What do you think?
http://www.ethicsusa.com/article.cfm?ID=3464
"There is a high correlation between motivation and discipline. In searching for the motivators that move kids to action you might want to consider the following Kid Currency. (Things that kids value.) Contrary to what many believe, kid currency is not just stuff but a number of different things that are really valuable to children. Here's a few we've discovered. If you discover others drop us a line and we'll include your ideas in our National On Line Newsletter, Values in Action!
1-Adult Approval- Many kids love to perform for adults especially the adults they like. It s critical to establish relationships prior to asking kids for various responsibilities. Just because a child is not motivated by you does not mean that adults like a grandfather, uncle, or school custodian could be the currency they re looking for.
2- Peer Time- Some kids are motivated by having the opportunity to hang out with a buddy. If they can play with a friend they ll do anything to earn the time.
3-Independence- Some children are motivated by having the opportunity to play with a special tub of Lego blocks, sand box, Coaster Tycoon, or the wiggle Microphone. They like doing things on their own. You might want to have a number of items in a rental tray that kids can rent from you based on accomplishing their behavior goals.
4-Competition- Many children love competition. I remember the contest we had in running across Orange County. We simply placed the children s picture on a piece of yarn that was glued to a map of Orange County. Kids that are motivated by competition can t wait to see how they re doing in relationship to other class members as their pictures are moved across the yarn on the map.
5-Mystery Bag- Kids like puppets that have hands. If you place a highly prized puppet into a paper bag you ll only have to do it once and the bag will forever be magical and prized as one of the top kid currency.
6-Monkey Animal Transitions -I discovered one of the most powerful kid currency was when I introduced kids to a monkey that taught them how to set goals and behave. I have since learned how really powerful and life changing a stuffed animal can be in transforming negative classroom behavior to positive constructive behavior. Kids will do anything for the monkey where they won t do it for you.
7-Food- If you were a kid what would attract your attention besides food? There s no doubt about it kids are motivated by fish crackers, M&Ms, pretzels, etc. Because food has allergy implications and dependency issues we need to be selective about use of food in the classroom.
If you re not sure what currency your children value, you might want to attend Gene Bedley s National Seminar- Discipline and the Difficult Child, where you ll be introduced to* A Child s Motivators and Reinforcers (a child s preference scale that will guarantee the currency )" So this is the website if you are interested in finding out more. I found it very fascinating. I know for Aidan, he will get all his chores and all his homework done if there is Wii time at the end of it. It is valuable for me to know what motivates my kids because then I can help them be more productive and get their homework and chores done with less yelling and frustration. What do you think?
http://www.ethicsusa.com/article.cfm?ID=3464
