It is one thing to recite what a quarter, dime, nickel are worth.  Like a robot.

It’s something else to be excited when you pick up a stray quarter because you know what it will do for you.

It has been a struggle to teach why coins are worthy when all our transactions are efficient credit card ones and Mom is mostly always in a hurry.  The teachable moments on coins pass by.  

The great news is that John loves to mess (you know it is really “stim”, right? as in “perseveration”, to do something over and over) with Rosemary’s clock timer during OT sessions.  (Rosemary Slade, O.T.R.)    And consistency with home chores is way past due.   John now has a motivation to do chores because he wants to buy a stim!  (and other things, but never underestimate the clever leverage of a stim!)

Rosemary and I brainstormed how to extend the teachable moments involving time, coins, counting, self-control, and choosing personal rewards.   We list the things he is working for (swimming, movie, computer, Mom’s phone), and when he makes a bad choice, he has to decide which one gets eliminated.   This takes some thought, and we can see him making the calculations.  He has to pay fines for humming (another stim) and other bad choices.  He also gets to buy more play with the phone timer.

John is blessed that Rosemary is willing to add this extra “transaction” complexity, including making change, to our OT sessions.

(And they both seem to love it—I hear a lot of laughter and negotiation going on.)

So, with your children—use their stims creatively.   It’s all fair in love and teachable moments.