Last Friday, we attended a very interesting parenting workshop, ‘Developing your Child’s Organisation Skills’, which is part of the Julia Gabriel Positive Parenting series of Workshops. We were so inspired by what we learnt that evening, that we’ve already implemented the first step, and are working on the others.
Ms Julia Gabriel herself conducted the 2.5 hour workshop, and she shared eight different steps on how to develop our child’s organisation skills. I’ll only be sharing the first step in this post, as it’s the only one we’ve managed to put into place over the weekend, but don’t worry, I’ll be sharing about the others really soon.
Julia Gabriel Positive Parenting Workshop
Initially, we were wondering how it is possible to teach a toddler organisation skills, when many adults, myself included, struggle to even organise our desks. We learnt that children who lack organisation skills are challenged by completing or following through on tasks, fulfilling their chores, and submitting their homework on time. They may end up being labelled as ‘lazy’ or ‘demotivated’, as it can be hard to distinguish between a lack of motivation, and poor organisation skills. Thus, children can definitely benefit from being shown how to develop organisation skills within the family, which can provide a nurturing foundation for learning. Children from six months old to six years old can be taught to organise their belongings, and it is best to start as early as possible, to establish the habit and routine. This way, they won’t be overwhelmed by the number of things they have to do when they start Primary One.
Step One: Getting Organised
The first step is to ensure that you and your home are organised. – Designate a place for children to keep their toys, books, stationery, school bags, sports equipment, and so on. – Sort everything into containers, shelves, drawers, tubs, and boxes. – Label these storage containers with either words or pictures (use pictures if your child is very young and cannot read yet), so that he/she are able to put things away immediately, in the proper place, independently. – Expect children to put things away themselves. They might need your help and encouragement at times, but it is their individual responsibility.
This step shows them that everything has a place, and helps children feel in control. Their world is organised, and they are comfortable and familiar with the system. Children between the ages of six months old to two years old can be taught to organise and put away their belongings, once you establish the routine of putting things back in their place. This routine might take six to seven weeks to implement, but the key is consistency and regular repetition. Start by modelling the behaviour, and make it fun for the children, by perhaps using a song.
We use this song!
Our living room used to be quite messy, with Noah’s toys thrown into a large container randomly. Most of the time, he left his toys strewn all over the carpet and floor, and we didn’t really make him put them back, because we figured he was going to play with them again the next day. Oops.
We made a quick trip down to Ikea over the weekend, and here’s how Noah’s toy corner in our living room looks now.
Noah’s toy corner
We still have to label the individual containers, so that he knows where to put away the different toys, but it’s a start! I’ll share more on the next steps in a later post, once I get organised enough to do so. 😉
C and I found the workshop very helpful, and especially liked that we were taught practical tips that are easily implemented. If you’re keen to attend similar workshops, here are some details.
Julia Gabriel Positive Parenting Workshops
26th Sept Developing your Child’s Imagination 24th Oct Developing your Child’s Critical Thinking 21st Nov Developing your Child’s Social and Emotional Awareness
$65 per person / $110 per couple (Enjoy a 10% discount from your 3rd workshop onwards) Workshop materials and light refreshments will be provided. Please call 6733 4322 or email adulteducation@juliagabriel.com to register, as there are limited spaces available. More information on the Julia Gabriel Positive Parenting Workshops can be found on this website.
*We were invited to attend the workshop for the purpose of this review. All photos and opinions are our own.
*******
If you’ve enjoyed reading this post, do like my Facebook page to get updates. You can also follow me on Twitter (@GrowingwtheTans), Instagram (@GrowingwiththeTans), and Dayre (@GrowingwiththeTans), for short updates on what’s going on in our lives. Thank you! 🙂
Comments