Motivating Children to Do Their Best
I am sure as parents we are always on the lookout for ways we can be motivating children to do their best. With Henry, we praise him as much and as often as we can. For children with autism, it is usually the small things that present themselves as motivation. Henry is almost 11 and he just learned to tie his shoes a few months ago. We sang and danced and hooted and hollered over that milestone. He is so sweet and innocent and if you could have seen the huge smile on his face after he mastered the feat, your heart would have melted! These kids need constant reminding to perform even the simple tasks. If you saw the movie Groundhog Day or 50 First Dates, you may relate to how life can be with an autistic child. As each day breaks, it is like everything we taught Henry the day before has evaporated. So with that, we need a huge amount of patience with him or we may go plum crazy!!
Through the years we have found creative ways to motivate Henry. We have used reward charts, chore contracts, praise and lots and lots of love. I have not found a company that made anything that could be a consistent reminder throughout the day for him. Nudge tees, founded by Carmen Modcana, is a fantastic company that gives children fun and creative ways to “give your kids a little nudge” when they need it! Each product from Nudge is designed to celebrate a child’s achievement–big or small–and inspiring them to do more. Each Nudge tee is designed to encourage a child’s accomplishments so they can recognize the value of their efforts, gain confidence, and be inspired to do greater things. Nudge tees is a company that was founded on love and admiration for the constant nudges Carmen received as a child. Carmen had a family who consistently nudged her to do a bit better than the day before. These words of encouragement shaped her into the woman she is today. Nudge Tees is a vehicle for encouragement and motivation for kids. Carmen makes her tees for adults as well as children, which is so wonderful. She wanted to recognize those adults who also need encouragement each day.
Empowering Kids to Succeed
If there is one thing I have learned as a parent, is that we are the cornerstone of empowering kids to succeed, therefore shaping them into the adult they will be. Each child is different and what empowers one child may not be effective with another. For my family, we treat each accomplishment the same; big or small. When Henry masters reading an entire high school level chapter book at age 10 or remembers to make his bed, we praise him the same for each. When Nudge Tees offered my family tees from their collection, I was so excited. The figures on these tees are adorable stick kids who are performing various tasks. For Henry I chose the “I Make My Bed” tee (valued at $20) as he recently mastered that task. His face lit up like a Christmas tree when he saw his shirt. He put it on immediately and proceeded to go make his bed!! Each tag on the Nudge tees has a sticker you can put up to encourage your kids with another task. Our sticker was “I Brush My Teeth” which is a task we struggle with in our home. I am so thankful for being directed to Nudge so that I may continue on the path to making Henry the great person he is and will be.
Two lucky winners will receive one Nudge Tee (valued at $20.00 per shirt) of their choice, in child or adult sizes.
