How To Motivate Children By Rewarding Them The Right Way
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Everything you do in your day-to-day life needs motivation. Be it working out for a healthy body, working hard for a hefty paycheck, or putting your mind and soul together for a project. Without thinking of the rewards, giving your best to what you do is near impossible. In the same way, when it comes to kids, it is hard to lure them into good behavior without promising them suitable rewards. When we say rewards, it doesn’t have to be an expensive toy or a trip to Disneyland. A simple star sticker on their behavior chart would do. Here is how you can keep your little one motivated with rewards. Read on!
1. Motivation Brings Success
It is said that finding motivation is crucial for realizing one’s ambitions. The process of developing motivation begins in early childhood. Even if motivation is something natural that might originate merely from appreciating something, the key to getting what you want out of life is developing a well-balanced set of determination.
2. There Are Two Primary Sources Of Inspiration That Push Us To Take Action
It may be helpful to distinguish between the two forms of motivation if you want to understand why kids do or don’t do particular activities. The first kind is known as intrinsic and manifests itself whenever a person engages in activities for the sake of enjoyment (1). For example, playing video games. On the other hand, extrinsic motivation develops when an individual acts to gain some external reward (2). For example, achieving a high mark on a test is seen as an example of an external factor.
3. Incentives Can Be Used To Induce Motivation
Rewards may be a source of inspiration for kids the same way they can be for grownups. Positive reinforcement is a term used in psychology to describe the process of rewarding a person for engaging in a behavior in the hopes that the recipient will continue engaging in that behavior in the future (3).
4. A Compliment Might Serve As A Positive Reinforcement Strategy
The range of incentives mirrors the diversity of the drivers behind desired behavior. These can be concrete, such as a game, monetary gift, or intangible, such as a comment that recognizes effort rather than merely the end product. You may achieve this by shifting your attention from the child’s exam scores to the work they put into their schoolwork. Since children have a keen ability to detect dishonesty, it’s best to be genuine and avoid overdoing it with compliments.
5. Parents Should Be Clear In Their Directions
A better line of communication may be established with your children if you give them a voice in the reward they get. It’s an excellent way to keep interested in the prize and motivate yourself. But as a parent, you should constantly encourage extrinsic motivation by expressing the directives or the conduct you want in very plain terms.
6. Set Up Some Sort Of Structured Incentive System
Children can be encouraged to study via the use of incentives. To be effective, though, individuals must believe they will get access to something exceptional upon completing the exercises. For instance, you can devise a point system that kids may utilize to earn rewards at the end of each study session. Make a table to keep track of their points as they are reached.
7. Come Up With Unique Certificates Of Achievement To Award Exemplary Conduct
Don’t assume you’ll need to spend a lot of money to motivate your children at home. Some of the most straightforward and least expensive answers are indeed well-received by children. For example, one notion commonly utilized in the classroom that may be useful at home is the awarding of certificates of appreciation to kids for doing things the correct way or for celebrating an achievement that serves as an example to the rest of the kids.
8. Don’t Overdo It; Save It For When You Truly Need It
When kids are rewarded for doing something they love on their own, it might cause them to do it just because they know they’ll get something out of it. Keep in mind that kids may be different from grownups in that they tend to be more inquisitive and motivated by the prospect of making progress toward a clear objective.
9. Don’t Use Bribery To Correct Bad Conduct
Avoid using materialistic rewards to correct your children’s conduct if you genuinely want to see an end to their negative actions. It is helpful to reach out to such people to learn more about the origins of their undesirable behavior. Perhaps your child is experiencing anxiety or just doesn’t feel heard. As a result, offering incentives is not worthwhile; instead, a healthy, balanced solution should be correct.
Rewarding your child for good work can be one of the most essential tools in your hands for good parenting. Most parents hesitate at the thought of rewarding their children for fear of spoiling them, but in reality, it depends on what you consider as rewards. Sometimes even words of praise count as the most significant rewards a child can have. So, would you like to add anything to our list? Let us know in the comments section! Happy parenting.
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