A Lesson on Listening...

Listening continues to be one of Jay-R's biggest struggles. He always seems to have his own agenda and needs to find out the answer for himself which gets him into trouble at times. He is a bundle of non-stop energy, so much different from Ashleigh who is quiet at school.

Well, today at school Jay-R had to pull 3 tickets. To explain, each ticket is a warning...four tickets equals a trip to see the principal. Apparently, he was silly in class and had some trouble listening. Kory and I had a heart to heart serious talk about the importance of listening to his teacher and doing as he is told. We tried to explain the importance of why he needs to learn in terms he could understand. Sometimes, upcoming changes trigger behaviors in him. I don't say this to excuse the behaviour, it just helps us to understand maybe the reason behind it which helps us address it with him. Tomorrow is his teacher's last day before her 3 month pregnancy leave. He knows the sub he will have, but nonetheless, it is a change for him, and changes still kind of freak him out.

So, we talked a lot about this. Ashleigh helped him make his teacher a card and helped him write that he was sorry for not listening. At bedtime, he told me, "Mommy, I don't like being in trouble." I explained to him that all he has to do is listen and follow directions and he won't be in trouble. I told him that he needs to learn so he can grow-up to be a policeman (his current future job endeavor). He then proceeded to name all the things that policemen need to do like knowing how to write.

When he gets older, he'll probably have a fit that I shared his ornery side with the whole world, but hopefully we'll be able to look back and see how far he has come. We love this silly boy, but there is a time for silliness and a time for seriousness. Parenting is day by day learn as you go...each child is different!!! Jay-R is full of personality!!!