About the same time, I had to leave the house for a few minutes to try to find a post office where I could mail our election ballots.
Upon returning a few minutes later, I could hear Lukas yelling upstairs, and could tell he was very upset, which is fairly rare for him. Apparently he didn't want to brush his teeth or perhaps go to the bathroom, I wasn't sure. But I could also hear that Mrs. LIAYF was standing firm in her request.
Then, when I arrived at the top of the stairs, she was telling him that his time was up, and she was going to help him out. Something he definitely did NOT want. But as she approached, something interesting happened.
"Wait!" he yelled. "Wait Mommy! I have to do something!'
"What?" she asked, clearly not in the mood to put up with much more of his attitude. Watching what had unfolded, I didn't blame her one bit.
"I have to sing something" he explained. Then he broke into the following song:
"Once I knew a volcano
who almost blew his top
-
-
I grabbed him by the hand and said
'Here's how you can stop'
-
-
Take a deep breath,
Count to Five
Till you feel all calm inside
(then quieter he sang)-
-
Take a deep breath
Count to five,
(then quieter he sang)-
-
Take a deep breath
Count to five,
Till you feel all calm inside"
After he was done he said "I feel better now" and let out a smile. It was amazing to watch, and I just stood there for a couple of moments in the bathroom door beaming with pride at what I had witnessed.
Then I joined his mother in giving him a big hug.
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11 comments:
That's cute! I wonder if teaching that to my preschooler would help. ;-)
Awes, that is so cute! Im with ya though, mine has been a total terror here lately too. I guess I shall blame the time change, we had the same fight last night, well Mr Monkey Butt and the lil one did anyways. Whats the big deal with brushing those teeths!
Wow. That is wonderful. We work so hard with our 3 yo to deal with her emotions in a more positive way, but her typical response is something along the lines of "I don't WANT to take a deep breath!" The fact that he spontaneously decided to sing the song and calm himself gives me hope!
I can certainly relate to this story. Often Christopher is the same why, not wanting to do anything we ask of him. It happens.
Ha! That's awesome.
I had a rough day today with the boy, but after dinner he suddenly said, "You know how much I love you?" (which is something his mom told him a couple of hours earlier). I asked, "How much?" and he said, "One hundred!"
I guess he can live here another day.
I am going to teach mine that song tomorrow.
That's great! I, like most others that have commented, will be teaching my kids this song. And I think I also could use it myself from time to time.
I AM TEACHING THIS TO MY SON RIGHT NOW!!!
Yup, I'm copying those lyrics right now! What a smart little boy you have. Oh wait, I mean BIG boy. I imagine calling him "little" might cause him to have to sing that song again...if he's anything like my BIG boy! :-)
@momnextdoor - How did you know??? Lukas is a big boy, not little!! :)
We also have to give some credit to his pre-K teachers who use this song with all the children and talk a lot about emotions and how to act appropriately. However, most of the credit goes to a 4yo who decided to sing the song instead of throwing himself on the floor and yelling.
I've had this sitting in my reader because I am truly impressed by this. We should be giving all kids this kind of tool, but even if we did I don't know how many would be able to use it like Lukas did.
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