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Age group(s) for which this strategy is helpful:
Preschool and Younger
Elementary School
Middle School
High School & Beyond
Instructions for using this strategy:
Put learning goals in sealed envelopes along with a dollar bill, a movie ticket, or a coupon for some fun activity. (Make the "prize" equal to the task, but within your budget.) Put these away somewhere.
When your child has reached the goal, she can ceremoniously open the envelope!
Other information parents should consider:
For older kids, put some "big ticket items" in envelopes, but also put some smaller, fun "prizes" in other envelopes. Fun "prizes" can be a coupon to purchase a whoopie cushion or a magic trick, or some "Just five more minutes!" coupons that kids can use at any time during the school year (for TV shows, computer games, talking on the phone, or using email). Friends or relatives can also put prizes in envelopes (e.g., a trip with a sibling to get an ice cream cone on a hot summer night).
Kids can pick these prizes out of a bag. They can either pick one envelope when it's time to get the reward and take whatever they get, or they can pick one "real" prize envelope and one "fun" prize. This will introduce an element of chance, create some suspense, and maintain a sense of fun.
By Jerome J. Schultz, Ph.D.
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Pregnancy
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