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Time Management 101: Time Management For Families

Time Management 101: Time Management For Families

Successful time management results in successful stress management. And in today’s busy world, it’s especially important for families to find quality time to spend together. Discover 6 easy time management tips you can incorporate today. Teach your children to form good time management habits now so they’ll become better students…and better leaders!

“Successful time management results in successful stress management.” Colleen Kettenhofen

The following time management tips for families are the same ones I discussed as a featured guest on the television talk show A.M. Northwest. These are simple, basic, easy-to-follow time management tips for both parents and children. And they are the same time management tips that have worked for me in my business as a motivational speaker and author:

  1. Have white dry erase boards personalized for each person: Place one in the kitchen and one in each bedroom. The benefit of white boards in the kitchen and in each bedroom is that you and your kids will constantly see them and be reminded of what needs to be accomplished.
  2. Write down tasks with specific time frames for each parent and child: Set aside specific times and stick with them. For example, you would write on the white board, “Brandon and Chloe, homework 6:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.” And for the mom or dad, “Mom/Dad cook dinner 6:00 p.m. to 6:45 p.m.” and so forth. This way you are constantly reminded of what to do and when. You will get around to completing these tasks sooner rather than later because by “seeing” them all the time, you’ll want to cross them off your list. Erase the tasks after completing them so you no longer have to look at them!
  3. Color code for each family member: It’s easy to visualize who is supposed to do what when each individual has their own color. A lot of teams utilize this same technique in the workplace to help with time management.
  4. Clear off your desk or work area: This helps you and your kids to clear out clutter so you can concentrate single-mindedly on those projects such as paying bills or doing homework Time management rule number one: do the thing you like least first.
  5. Do the thing you like least first and plan a reward such as a fun family activity for afterward: We all have tasks that we have to do that we don’t want to do. It’s easy to procrastinate. Research points to the fact that the longer you procrastinate, the harder it is to get motivated. The hardest part is just getting started. And once you’re done, you feel so much better, lighter and happier. You and your family will feel deserving of a reward afterward such as fun time watching TV, playing games, or attending a Saturday picnic.
  6. Be a positive role model: Teach your children to form good time management habits from the beginning. When your kids see you as self-disciplined and overcoming procrastination by doing things you’d rather not, it reinforces that behavior in them as well. It sets them up later in life to be good parents themselves, and better leaders at school and in the workplace.

Keep in mind that everything you procrastinate today only compounds tomorrow’s pressure. Decide what you want. What tasks must be done in order for you and your family to accomplish your goalsFree Web Content, dreams and aspirations? Act now. Don’t wait another day. The future is now.

About the Author: Adam Waxler

Photo credit: Danielle Nelson (Flickr) https://www.flickr.com/photos/manyfires/

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Meaningful Social Skill Lessons for a Child With Autism

Children with Autism are very concrete and literal and we should not assume that they are picking up everything we do via watching or observing us. We need to be more mindful and deliberate when it comes to parenting a child with autism because they do not always absorb things just by being exposed to them. Realistically, there is much that is happening that is not being noticed unless we specifically point it out.

Meaningful-Social-Skill-Lessons

..there is no such thing as too much repetition for a child on the autism spectrum

–Connie Hammer, MSW

The best strategy for turning a social encounter into a meaningful learning experience for your autistic child is to call attention to the manner in which you relate to them and why. This is a simple yet effective way to expand your child’s social toolbox.

Here are some tips on how to make each interaction you have with your child more meaningful and useful:

  • Use the rewind button. After a typical social interaction you have with your child, rewind what you just did and replay it for them in slow motion. Ex. “Did you notice what I just did? I wanted to ask you a question so I made sure I was close to you instead of hollering from across the room.” Replay the scene using each approach and ask which one works best. For older children you can also get into a discussion of why that tactic was the better one to use.
  • Pretend you need help. All children like being asked to share their opinion – it makes them feel important. When you have time to think ahead, try involving your child in a social skill decision. “I want to ask your dad a question but he looks as if he is busy right now, what do you think I should do?” Then present two plausible options, one more socially acceptable than the other and ask your child what do you think will happen if I use option A, then examine option B.
  • Paint a picture of what you just did. “I wanted to make sure I had your attention so I leaned over and looked into your eyes.” Then follow up with a specific description of using that skill – “When you want to make sure someone is listening to you, it’s best to get in front of them and look at the color of their eyes.” Add any specific details that you think your child will need – in front of means an arms length away, not right up in their face, etc.
  • Point out your mistakes. Even as adults, not all of our interactions are successful but we often know where we went wrong. This is a great opportunity to share your experience with your child and prompt them to think about what you could have done differently. When asking their advice do not let too much time go by after you pose the question or make them feel pressured by it, simply fill in the answer for them and briefly discuss it, if possible.

Remember, there is no such thing as too much repetition for a child on the autism spectrum. It is always a good idea to end each one of these possible scenarios with a specific description regarding the social skill you are trying to teach and duplicate it as often as you think you need to in order for your child to grasp the skill.

There is always ample opportunity to practice most of these skills because they occur over and over again in our daily activities. The added benefit to this process is that we grow in awareness as to how we utilize our own social skills to communicate and get to practice them more consciously.

Additional Resources:

About the Author

Connie Hammer, MSW, parent educator, consultant and coach, guides parents of young children recently diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder to uncover abilities and change possibilities. Visit her website http://www.parentcoachingforautism.com to get your FREE resources – a parenting ecourse, Parenting a Child with Autism – 3 Secrets to Thrive and a weekly parenting tip newsletter, The Spectrum.

Photo Credit: Children at Risk Foundation (flickr)

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Recreation and leisure activates key component

Recreation and leisure activates key component - support for students growth center

Recreation and leisure activities are key components of community participation, but daily living skills such as cooking, hygiene, travel/mobility, money management and health care are also necessary for successful everyday functioning.

In my classroom we work on a functional life skills curriculum. This means that every lesson incorporates some form of necessary life skill for everyday living. For instance, if I want to teach my students math we may set up an area of the classroom like a grocery store. My students will be given fake money (it looks very similar to real money), they will find items from a picture/word list, and then purchase said items. They need to make sure that they have enough money to purchase the items on the list. He students love this lesson because it seems more like a game. Another math lesson I do is incorporated into cooking instruction. One day we made tacos. The students needed to count all of the shells to make sure there were at least two per student. Then, they needed to measure and/or weigh all of the ingredients. After making the meat mixture, they needed to properly divide it among all of the taco shells.

There are many ways of incorporating functional life skills into academic lesson plans. I believe that all of the skills worked on in the classroom are only effective if they are reinforced at home.

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