Ok, maybe not anything. It kind of happened by accident. We were at our witts-end with getting me out of our Little Man’s bedroom at night. We would near the end of our bedtime routine and if I left before our toddler was fully asleep, he’d cry and be awake for another 30 minutes. I’d tell him, “in two minutes, Mommy is going to go.” I’d watch my clock, and in two minutes I’d leave, he’d cry. Round and round we’d go. We weren’t getting anywhere.
The light-bulb moment came when I decided to let him see the timer on my phone. “See? Mommy will leave in 5 minutes.” The timer went off, and I slipped out of his room without a tear shed. “Ok mommy, good night!” Ding ding ding!
Well that was clever! What else can I use this for? It became a no-brainer for transitioning between activities.
“Two minutes until nap time!” “Five minutes to finish eating your dinner.” “Leaving the park in 6 minutes!”
The key is letting him set the timer and turn it off when time is up. He gets to see the time and feels in control of the transition. When time is up, he knows it’s time to move on to the next activity. He trusts the system.
Grandparents use the same trick getting him to sleep at their house. He already knows the routine so it easily translates to a good night’s sleep for everyone.
No one argues with the timer!
For the most part, we’ve been able to avoid tantrums by using the timer strategy. The most trouble comes when I have forgotten to use the timer and he’s not ready to go to bed or finish an activity. But a simple, “two more minutes,” and he settles down. When the timer goes off, he’s ready to move on!
What tips do you have for helping your toddler transition between activities?
