What A Success Our Helper Program Has Become!

We expect our children at the daycare to be responsible for their own needs. So when we started the helper program we had no idea how beneficial and rewarding and popular it would be with the children involved.

The program meant that each of the older children (three at the time) would be given assignments that would help the teachers with specific tasks to make more demanding times of the day i.e. lunch/naptime function more smoothly.

During this time, each child proceeded at their own pace and each would be moving at a different time from eating, to washing up, to getting ready for naptime, to diaper changing, to actually getting on their cot and falling asleep.

With everyone going through this process there were a lot of moving parts.

The helpers role was to:

1.Help take of shoes and socks.
2.Get diapers/lotions/skin treatment.
3.Discard diapers (carefully wrapped and safe).
4.Get blankets.
5.Sit beside a child in need of help calming down.
6.Arranging the socks and shoes so they could be easily accessed after nap.
7.Any need that arose throughout the day
     a.Help a child do a puzzle
     b.Clean up
     c.Help put on jackets for outside time.
     d.Help the younger ones with unfamiliar toys.

Each of the helpers had this assignment for a week. It quickly became their favorite time at the daycare!

You may want to apply this task challenge at home. If you are a one child family, your child could take on family tasks. If you are a multi-child family then you may consider following our approach.
Either way, it is an invaluable opportunity to increase your child’s maturity, sense of responsibility, confidence and caring.

In our case, the goal is to increase character building, maturity, responsibility as the rewards. I believe the approach will be most successful if a physical or monetary reward is not involved.

You will be able to enjoy the pride they have in their accomplishments with them!

Good Luck!