Monday, September 5, 2016

What can I do to trick my 2.5-year-old toddler into walking longer distances?

Bribery.

Only on long hikes do I ever give my granddaughter Lifesaver candies. In fact, Layla never gets hard sugar candy at any other time, except Halloween, so they are super special.  I carry a roll in my pocket.  And she doesn't get one as soon as she finishes the last; sometimes I say, "In five minutes", sometimes I say, "When we get up to the ridge."  I did this with my daughters before her too.

The first time this worked, I decided that the name "Lifesaver" didn't come from the shape but from their value with children.

On the backpack trip shown (just over Tioga pass) we never carried her once. When we came out of the wilderness (when the photo was taken) Layla said, "We're not going home, are we?? Can't we stay?"  That reaction was what made the trip a true success.

A year later we took a trip up to see the snow, and Layla said it was her "second favorite place." I asked her what her favorite place was, and she said "Yosemite", where we had backpacked.



Read other answers by Richard Muller on Quora: Read more answers on Quora.

from Quora http://ift.tt/2bYP8hO

No comments:

Post a Comment