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ESTABLISHING POSITIVE ROUTINES
How to Motivate Your Children to Do the
Things They Need to DoNOW WE TURN OUR attention to your second big parenting job:
encouraging your children to do the positive things you want them to
do. We call this behavior category Start behavior, because you want
your children to start doing their schoolwork, going to bed, eating
their supper, cleaning their rooms, and getting up and out in the
morning.
Recall that Start behavior requires more motivation from children
than Stop behavior. While it may take only one second to stop
whining or arguing, tasks such as doing homework or getting off to
school may require thirty minutes or more. Kids not only have to start
these jobs, they also have to continue and finish them. Counting
difficult behavior is fairly easy. When it comes to encouraging