I have recently been exposed to the concept of Blanket Time (or Blanket Training) and while it may be a controversial topic, I felt like it might be a good opportunity for us to teach Joshua some boundaries and self control. There are a few techniques of blanket training that I do not really agree with, but there are no blanket training police patrolling the area telling me I am doing it all wrong. :) The concept is this: Lay a special blanket (meaning dedicated just for blanket time) on a space on the floor and allow child to have toys (also dedicated just to floor time) and train them to play quietly for a determined amount of time without setting foot off the blanket. You are supposed to start with about 3-5 minutes on the blanket and gradually work up to an hour. I thought I might have missed a window of opportunity with Joshua being 2 1/2 already, but it was quite the opposite. His comprehension level is marvelous and I had no problem communicating to him what we were doing. I explained to him what we were doing, set the timer for 5 minutes and when the timer rang, He looked at me like he was not ready to be done, so I let him go another 5 minutes. (We did briefly stop the timer for a potty break). But the first attempt was, I think, successful. We tried again on Saturday morning and that one was not as smooth (but I think that had to do with Jim being home) One of the things I hope to establish in the upcoming weeks is that he can sing and play quietly, and to cut down on the amount of time I interact with him. Here is some video I captured of him not being a wild man and playing nicely on his blanket. (nothing real interesting, just video evidence [for my sake] that he stayed put) :)
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4 comments:
This is interesting. I heard a couple of mothers talking about this just this past week. I know many of my friends who really struggle having to give undivided attention to their children every moment throughout the day and needing quiet time other than nap time. I look forward to reading and studying more about this. (He's a cutie!)
Strem!!! I have missed you! :) Hope you are doing well! One of the things I hope to accomplish with blanket time is using it when visiting with people in their home. It's hard when not everyone has a child-proofed home, so to have a way to entertain Joshua, without the worry of him destroying someone's house (haha) is worth looking into for me.
I had never heard of this. I hope it works for you and Joshie! I love how he sits there and sings! He is definitely your little boy!
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Never heard of this but what a great idea!!! I’ll keep this in mind when #3 comes along!!
With in the last 3-5 months the twins have quit taking naps and for my sanity I started using their old nap time for quiet time. They have to go to separate rooms in the house and play or read quietly by themselves. They really enjoy it and does them good to get away from each other for awhile!
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