Use waiting periods for things he/she wants. That desire could be for an object like a toy or candy or anything highly prized by your child. This delayed gratification practice must be be simple, frequently occurring and easily added onto the the activites of the day.

For example, while grocery shopping, buy something very small and and inexpensive. Let them hold it during the shopping trip. Your child understand he/she must wait until he/she gets into the car. If your must also understand that if the object is opened before that, then the desired object is forfeitted. You can be creative in the ways to add this period of waiting into your lifestyle and the intersts of your child.

This was a genuine and ongoing struggle for my son.

Any activity that requires deadlines, boring chores, or a long series of steps to complete sends our kids off course. Most often, these will need your monitoring. The child practicing thinking about the reward at the end and completing the unpleasant task, will need less monitoring as time goes on. Consequences for failure will need to be in place. (More on tailoring tasks and rewards to the child’s interests in my post titled Train Up Your Child With Their Smarts In Mind.)

For young ones, that may be not begging to stay longer when at a friend’s house when it’s time to go home. For teens it may be requiring the cell phone to be inaccessible while driving. The closer in time the rules are reviewed to the situation in which impulses need controling the better.

This storybook is a unique approach to teaching self-control over impulsivity to children whether or not they have ADD or ADHD. In this full-color, illustrated storybook, Hunter teaches students how he learned to use his very special remote control to become more successful. Once children read or hear Hunter’s story, they can create their own amazing remote controls. Remote control buttons include: • Channel Changer,,,Filtering out distractions • Pause… Stopping to think relax and create a plan • Fast Forward… Thinking before acting • Rewind… Shifting focus from past failure to future change • Slow Motion… Slowing down and managing stress • Coach… Problem solving • Zapper… Recognizing and rejecting negative thinking • Way to Go!

What Should Danny Do? is an innovative, interactive book that empowers kids with the understanding that their choices will shape their days, and ultimately their lives into what they will be. The book follows Danny, a Superhero-in-Training, through his day as he encounters choices that kids face on a daily basis offering times to exercise self-control verses impulsivity. As your children navigate through the different story lines, they will begin to realize that their choices for Danny shaped his day into what it became. And in turn, their choices for themselves will shape their days, and ultimately their lives, into what they will be.
Parents and teachers recommend this book for kids between the ages of 3-8 yrs old.

Roxy the Rhino doesn’t mean to interrupt or cut in line or take things without asking. Sometimes her excitement just takes over. Roxy has a problem with impulsivity. Thankfully Roxy meets a new friend who teaches her to stop, think, and wink. Maybe some things are worth the wait–and friendship is definitely one of those things!

Freeze

Before you start:

Designate an open area free of obstacles. If objects are present that cannot be moved, point them out and remind everyone that they must be careful not to touch another person or object.

Have the radio or music player ready with an appropriate station or music selection.

How to play:

In this activity, everyone dance as the music plays.

When the music stops, each player must freeze immediately and hold that position until the music begins again.

When the music stops, each player must freeze immediately and hold that position until the music begins again.

Since this is an aerobic game, it is better not for players to get “out.”