Anonymous wrote:Sometimes I pretend the kids have "lost" their listening ears. I look under the couch, behind the bookcase, in their pockets and belly buttons, I pretend to see it somewhere, sneak up on it, then grab it real fast and run to "attach" them back on the kid. Then I make sure they know how tired I am from all that searching so "please be very careful not to lose them again!". It totally works!
I also pretend whining hurts my ears. When they whine, I gasp and clutch my ears dramatically. "Ouch! That whining really hurts my ears. If you need to do that, could you please go where it won't hurt me?" It pretty much ALWAYS delivers a "nice" voice.
If they hand me their trash or things they don't want to put away (milk cup, unfinished snack) I'll turn to another person and ask "oh no! Did you turn me into a garbage can/refrigerator/lunch box with your magic wand?" They say "noooooo" and I say "oh I'm so relieved! Then why is 'child' trying to put trash in me?". My current charges know this one well and now catch themselves mid motion and laugh "noooooo, you're not a garbage can" then head to the trash instead.
I love this idea! Thank you so much for sharing.