The Art Positive Discipline

Last May, Dens and i started a new reward system for Troy. Every time he does something really good (ex. being very obedient, helping us out with baby sister, doing his assignments well), he earns a 'very good' sticker.

When he reaches 20 stickers, he gets rewarded with a toy of his choice.

I cannot express how happy i am to have implemented this system. It helped me solve several things on my discipline checklist:

1. Less negotiations in the toy store

Like any kid entering a toy store, Troy would start scouting for things that he likes. Leaving the store would often include some discussion on why we cannot purchase and what he can do to earn the toy that he desires. It can be a pretty lengthy process, i tell you.

With our new sticker reward system (am i starting to sound like a Home TV Shopping salesperson?!), Troy now goes to the toy store looking for his next target prize.  He happily leaves the store, thinking of ways he can earn more stickers.

2. Minimize clutter in the house

We used to reward him with small toys each time he finishes his assignments. This means that if he is given 3 assignments per week, he can earn a maximum of 3 toys. Imagine how much toys he has now accumulated in his room.

This time, he earns a sticker for each assignment that he finishes. It still motivates him to do a good job withouth us having to stock up on 'rewards' in the closet.

3. Teaches value for money

Now that he has to earn for the toys that he likes, he treasures them more. Although to be honest, Troy has been a pretty good steward of his toys ever since. He packs them away after use and knows where to find them later on. He probably has over 100 cars (no kidding) already but he knows each one of them. He can even identify where each car came from.

Anyhow, the sticker system is still a good tool to teach him that things don't come easy. 

To help you get started with this system, all you need are stickers, pen, colored paper, and design materials.  In order to build a sense of ownership, we asked Troy to write his own name on the sticker board and also design it himself.

We placed his sticker board on the refrigerator so that he can regularly check how he is progressing. He completed his first sticker board in 4 weeks and bought his much desired Iron Man toy. He is now on his second sticker board and has already earned 7 stickers on the first week! His current motivation is to purchase the Captain America action figure.

Positive discipline is way better than punishing when the child already did something wrong. It's more rewarding (literally) for the child and more pleasant for the parents.