OUR CHILDREN
Patri, Angelo
Our Children By Angelo Patri MOST little ones go out to play cheerfully but few come iw willingly. Their mothers and nurses set the time for one reason or the other, but the usual period is set at...
...Their mothers and nurses set the time for one reason or the other, but the usual period is set at the limit of the child's power to play happily...
...If possible get them to come along cheerfully...
...Children often do not know that they are tired...
...Hence the trouble at the end of the play hour...
...Nobody wants a battle with a tired child...
...A few experiences of this kind and he will soon come promptly at call...
...They get into a game of tag and run themselves ragged...
...Be on the spot at the expiration of the five minutes, take him in and he will soon learn what "Come in now," means...
...Try to avoid a fuss with children...
...Don't let their excitement affect you so that you begin screaming louder than they are doing...
...Decide what is best to do with your particular charge and stick to it until he learns...
...If you happen to have that kind of little one, the one who wants to play on and on, never willing to stop, go out to him, tell him that in five minutes you will be ready to take him in, and then do so...
...Each child has his own curve of power, and its declining curve, and mothers can soon discover what it is in terms of play hours and act accordingly...
...Avoid A Fuss Some children will fight to the end...
...By studying him, and training him, the 'come in' scene can be avoided...
...Their nerves at that point are no longer registering fatigue, so the children are likely to be exhausted long before they realize it and so still persist in keeping on with the game...
...Fatigue has claimed them finally...
...If one hour is about as much as the four-year-old can stand, go after him 10 minutes before the end, have a cookie, or a new toy, or some such treat ready for him, change his thought, and head him toward rest...
...Stop Play Before Fatigue By and by, they are so tired they lose control of themselves...
...To avoid this we must stop their games ahead of fatigue time...
...It is that degree of weariness that causes them to say, "No, I won't," or to keep right on doing what they want to do after they have been called in, or told to cease play...
...Each child shows this in his own characteristic fashion...
...Some show anger, some cry, some just lie down and are cross...
...It is plain to the eyes of those looking on that they are past the time for hard play but they slip out of the delaying hands and run once more—just once more...
...He will grow weary, and need to rest, but he will not want to rest...
...When they protest loudly, speak gently, and stand as close to them as you can get when you do so...
...Nobody likes to hear or to see him crying, or having a temper tantrum...
Vol. 8 • June 1944 • No. 26
