Child Behavior: What Parents Can Do to Change Their Child's Behavior

What is normal behavior for a child?

Normal behavior in children depends on the child's age, personality, and physical and emotional development. A child's behavior may be a problem if it doesn't match the expectations of the family or if it is disruptive. Normal or "good" behavior is usually determined by whether it's socially, culturally and developmentally appropriate. Knowing what to expect from your child at each age will help you decide whether his or her behavior is normal.

What can I do to change my child's behavior?

Children tend to continue a behavior when it is rewarded and stop a behavior when it is ignored. Consistency in your reaction to a behavior is important because rewarding and punishing the same behavior at different times confuses your child. When you think your child's behavior might be a problem, you have 3 choices:

• Decide that the behavior is not a problem because it's appropriate to the child's age and stage of development.
• Attempt to stop the behavior, either by ignoring it or by punishing it.
• Introduce a new behavior that you prefer and reinforce it by rewarding your child.

How do I stop misbehavior?

The best way to stop unwanted behavior is to ignore it. This way works best over a period of time. When you want the behavior to stop immediately, you can use the time-out method.

How do I use the time-out method?

Decide ahead of time the behaviors that will result in a time-out (usually tantrums, or aggressive or dangerous behavior). Choose a time-out place that is uninteresting for the child and not frightening, such as a chair, corner or playpen. When you're away from home, consider using a car or a nearby seating area as a time-out place.

When the unacceptable behavior occurs, tell the child the behavior is unacceptable and give a warning that you will put him or her in time-out if the behavior doesn't stop. Remain calm and don't look angry. If your child goes on misbehaving, calmly take him or her to the time-out area.

If possible, keep track of how long your child's been in time-out. Set a timer so your child will know when time-out is over. Time-out should be brief (generally 1 minute for each year of age), and should begin immediately after reaching the time-out place or after the child calms down. You should stay within sight or earshot of the child, but don't talk to him or her. If the child leaves the time-out area, gently return him or her to the area and consider resetting the timer. When the time-out is over, let the child leave the time-out place. Don't discuss the bad behavior, but look for ways to reward and reinforce good behavior later on.

How do I encourage a new, desired behavior?

One way to encourage good behavior is to use a reward system. Children who learn that bad behavior is not tolerated and that good behavior is rewarded are learning skills that will last them a lifetime. This works best in children older than 2 years of age. It can take up to 2 months to work. Being patient and keeping a diary of behavior can be helpful to parents.

Choose 1 to 2 behaviors you would like to change (for example, bedtime habits, tooth brushing or picking up toys). Choose a reward your child would enjoy. Examples of good rewards are an extra bedtime story, delaying bedtime by half an hour, a preferred snack or, for older children, earning points toward a special toy, a privilege or a small amount of money.

Explain the desired behavior and the reward to the child. For example, "If you get into your pajamas and brush your teeth before this TV show is over, you can stay up a half hour later." Request the behavior only one time. If the child does what you ask, give the reward. You can help the child if necessary but don't get too involved. Because any attention from parents, even negative attention, is so rewarding to children, they may prefer to have parental attention instead of a reward at first. Transition statements, such as, "In 5 minutes, play time will be over," are helpful when you are teaching your child new behaviors.

This system helps you avoid power struggles with your child. However, your child is not punished if he or she chooses not to behave as you ask; he or she simply does not get the reward.

What are some good ways to reward my child?

Beat the Clock (good method for a dawdling child)

Ask the child to do a task. Set a timer. If the task is done before the timer rings, your child gets a reward. To decide the amount of time to give the child, figure out your child's "best time" to do that task and add 5 minutes.

The Good Behavior Game (good for teaching a new behavior)

Write a short list of good behaviors on a chart and mark the chart with a star each time you see the good behavior. After your child has earned a small number of stars (depending on the child's age), give him or her a reward.

Good Marks/Bad Marks (best method for difficult, highly active children)

In a short time (about an hour) put a mark on a chart or on your child's hand each time you see him or her performing a good behavior. For example, if you see your child playing quietly, solving a problem without fighting, picking up toys or reading a book, you would mark the chart. After a certain number of marks, give your child a reward. You can also make negative marks each time a bad behavior occurs. If you do this, only give your child a reward if there are more positive marks than negative marks.

Developing Quiet Time (often useful when you're making supper)

Ask your child to play quietly alone or with a sibling for a short time (maybe 30 minutes). Check on your child frequently (every 2 to 5 minutes, depending on the child's age) and give a reward or a token for each few minutes they were quiet or playing well. Gradually increase the intervals (go from checking your child's behavior every 2 to 5 minutes to checking every 30 minutes), but continue to give rewards for each time period your child was quiet or played well.

What else can I do to help my child behave well?

Make a short list of important rules and go over them with your child. Avoid power struggles, no-win situations and extremes. When you think you've overreacted, it's better to use common sense to solve the problem, even if you have to be inconsistent with your reward or punishment method. Avoid doing this often as it may confuse your child.

Accept your child's basic personality, whether it's shy, social, talkative or active. Basic personality can be changed a little, but not very much. Try to avoid situations that can make your child cranky, such as becoming overly stimulated, tired or bored. Don't criticize your child in front of other people. Describe your child's behavior as bad, but don't label your child as bad. Praise your child often when he or she deserves it. Touch him or her affectionately and often. Children want and need attention from their parents.

Develop little routines and rituals, especially at bedtimes and meal times. Provide transition remarks (such as "In 5 minutes, we'll be eating dinner."). Allow your child choices whenever possible. For example, you can ask, "Do you want to wear your red pajamas or your blue pajamas to bed tonight?"

As children get older, they may enjoy becoming involved in household rule making. Don't debate the rules at the time of misbehavior, but invite your child to participate in rule making at another time.

Why shouldn't I use physical punishment?

Parents may choose to use physical punishment (such as spanking) to stop undesirable behavior. The biggest drawback to this method is that although the punishment stops the bad behavior for a while, it doesn't teach your child to change his or her behavior. Disciplining your child is really just teaching him or her to choose good behaviors. If your child doesn't know a good behavior, he or she is likely to return to the bad behavior. Physical punishment becomes less effective with time and can cause the child to behave aggressively. It can also be carried too far -- into child abuse. Other methods of punishment are preferred and should be used whenever possible.

When Your Toddler Doesn't Want to Eat

How much should my child eat?

How much your child eats may be very different from how much another child eats. Don't worry if it seems that your child doesn't eat enough at one meal. Children often make up for a small meal or a missed meal at the next mealtime.

If your child has plenty of energy and is growing, he or she is most likely healthy. Talk to your doctor if you have any concerns about how your child is growing or if you are concerned that picky eating is slowing your child's growth.

What if my child is a picky eater?

Many toddlers are picky eaters. Being picky about food is a normal behavior for many toddlers. There may be times when your child wants to eat a particular food again and again for a while, and then not want to eat it at all. Offer your child a variety of nutritious foods and let him or her choose what to eat. You may want to serve something you know your child likes along with another new nutritious food. But try to let your child explore new foods on his or her own. Don’t force your child to taste new foods. You may need to offer a new food several times before your child tries it.

You may need to be flexible with the meals you prepare to make sure your child gets a balanced diet. For example, if you're making beef stew for dinner and your child will only eat potatoes and carrots, you may need to cook some of these vegetables separate from the stew so that your child will eat them.

You may want to make a list of foods that you know your child likes so you can make sure he or she eats a balanced diet.

Setting a good example for your child can also help. If your child sees you eating a variety of healthy foods, he or she will be more likely to give them a try.

How can I make sure my child is getting enough to eat?

Offer your child food that is tasty and looks good, and offer the right amount. A good rule of thumb is to offer 1 tablespoon of each kind of food for each year of your child's age. If your child is still hungry, you can serve more. Don't force your child to clean his or her plate. Once he or she is no longer hungry, your child should be allowed to stop eating.

Try not to bribe your child to eat (such as offering dessert as a reward). Threats or punishments aren't good ideas, either. If your child doesn't want to eat, accept his or her refusal. Even though you may be concerned, don't show your child that you are upset by this refusal to eat. If your child is seeking attention, your disapproval fills that need, and he or she may try to gain your attention in the same way another time.

What about snacks?

Your child should have 3 meals and 2 snacks a day. Toddlers usually don’t eat enough in one meal to remain full until the next mealtime. Offer your child small, healthy snacks in between meals. Some examples of healthy snacks include low-fat string cheese, yogurt cups, apple slices or strawberry halves, slices of lean turkey or whole-grain crackers with peanut butter.

Try not to offer your child snacks close to mealtimes. If the next meal is several hours away, it’s okay to serve a snack. If the meal is in the next hour, avoid offering your child a snack. If your child comes to the table hungry, he or she is more likely to eat the meal.

If your child doesn't eat at one mealtime, you can offer a nutritious snack a few hours later. If your child doesn't eat the snack, you can offer food again at the next mealtime. A child will usually eat at the second meal. With this approach, you can be sure that your child won't go hungry for too long or have other problems associated with a poor diet.

How can I make mealtimes easier?

You may want to try the following suggestions to make mealtimes easier and more enjoyable:

· Give your child a heads up. Ten to 15 minutes before mealtime, tell your child that it will be time to eat soon. Children may be so tired or excited from play activities that they don't feel like eating. Letting your child know that it is almost time for a meal will give him or her a chance to settle down before eating.

· Establish a routine. Children are more comfortable with routines and predictability, so set regular mealtimes, have people use the same seats at the table or create a tradition to have each person talk about something fun or interesting that happened to them during the day.

· Reserve mealtimes for eating and for spending quality time with your family. Don't let your child play with toys during mealtimes. Reading books or watching television shouldn't be allowed during mealtimes either. Explain to your child how good it is to eat together and ask him or her to stay at the table until everyone has eaten.

· Make mealtimes pleasant. If mealtimes are pleasant, there is a good chance that your child will begin to look forward to eating with other family members. Try to avoid arguments during mealtime.

· Manage your expectations. Don't expect manners that are too difficult for your child. For example, don't expect a child who is 3 years old to eat with the proper utensil. For many children, a spoon is much easier to handle than a fork.

Emotional Intelligence

Why is emotional intelligence so important in raising a child? Managing anxiety in order to tackle a big project, managing anger to work through a marital conflict, managing fear to apply for a job -- the ability of a human being to manage his or her emotions in a healthy way will determine the quality of his life in a much more fundamental way than his IQ.  In fact, psychologists have come to call this ability EQ, or Emotional Intelligence Quotient.

What are the core components of high EQ?  Emotional self knowledge and self acceptance, sensitivity to the cues of others,  empathy (which can be defined as the ability to see and feel something from the other’s point of view), and the ability to regulate one’s own anxiety in order to talk about emotionally charged issues in a constructive way.

Your child’s EQ begins with her relationship with you.  How can you lay a solid foundation?

1. Hold your infant when she wants you and respond quickly to her cries.  High EQ starts in infancy with the baby's earliest interactions with caregivers, from which she develops feelings of security and trust.
2. Calm your own anxiety.  Almost a hundred years ago, psychologist Harry Stack Sullivan originated the idea that infants pick up anxiety from their parents. Recent research has confirmed that parents' touch, voices, and movements can either soothe a child or stimulate anxiety.

3. Help him learn to self-soothe.  We now know that babies learn to sooth themselves by first having someone else soothe them. From this they gain the experience of their physical and emotional needs as something manageable that can be tolerated. In fact, their nervous systems actually begin to lay the groundwork for self-calming later in life, meaning that babies' brains and nerves don't develop adequately unless they are held and soothed when they're upset.

Infants experience needs that aren't met as life threatening (as unsatiated hunger, or an absent caretaker, actually could be).  Emotions swamp these babies. Without the soothing they need, their nervous systems don't lay down the pathways that would later allow them to soothe themselves.  As toddlers they have a very hard time learning to self soothe or self regulate, because every feeling makes them anxious -– after all, it might lead to a catastrophe -– and escalates.  
In later childhood their feelings of neediness, fear or anger can trigger sweeping anxiety or panic, leading these kids to act out because they can't tolerate their feelings or calm themselves down.
4. Accept and acknowledge your child's emotions. You can (and should) limit his actions as necessary.  Teach kids that they can't choose their feelings any more then they can choose their arms and legs, but they can -- and must -- choose what to do with those feelings.
5. When in doubt, empathize.  Your empathy and acceptance helps your child accept her emotions, which is what allows her to resolve her feelings and move on.  Your empathy teaches her that her emotional life is not dangerous, is not shameful, and in fact is universal and manageable.  She learns that she is not alone.  She learns that even the less pleasant parts of herself are acceptable, which means that she is wholly acceptable.  And she learns to understand and accept herself.

6. Don't try to distract him from his feelings.  And don't shame him when he gets hurt ("A little scratch like that doesn't hurt," "Big boys don't cry."). Acknowledge, empathize, let him show you what happened, give him a little time to process.  Then he'll be ready to move on.

7. Repression doesn’t work.  Disapproving of her fear or anger won't stop her from having those feelings, but it may well force her to repress them.

Repressed feelings don't fade away, as feelings do that have been freely expressed.  Repressed feelings are trapped and looking for a way out.  Because they are not under conscious control, they pop out unmodulated, when a preschooler socks her sister or a seven year old has nightmares or an eleven year develops a nervous tic.

8. Active Listening virtually always helps diffuse intense feelings.  Accepting his feelings and reflecting them does not mean you agree with them or endorse them.  You're showing him you understand.  How? Listen.  Reflect. ("You sure are angry at your brother” “You seem worried about the field trip today.")

9. Help your child learn to problem solve. Most of the time, when kids (and adults) feel their emotions are understood and accepted, the feelings lose their charge and begin to dissipate. This leaves an opening for problem solving. Sometimes, kids can do this themselves.  Sometimes, they need your help to brainstorm.  But resist the urge to handle the problem for them unless they ask you to; that gives kids the message that you don't have confidence in his ability to handle it himself.

10. Handling anger constructively is one of the most important skills you can give your child. When he’s angry, look under the anger for the hurt or fear that his anger is defending against. Remember that he will learn what you model.  Use words, not force.  Don’t let anger escalate.  Breathe so you can keep listening.
11. Model emotional intelligence.  What they see you do is what they will do. Do you start snapping at people when you're under stress?  Have minor tantrums when things go wrong?  Can you stay calm during emotionally charged discussions? Do you empathize when feelings are expressed?  So will they.

12. Intervene before your own feelings get out of hand.  Every time I find myself yelling at one of my children, I realize that the fault is mine.  Not only that I am yelling, but that I didn't intervene in an effective way before yelling was necessary.

My five year old didn't turn off the computer when I asked, and now will be late to bed?  Obviously, she needed me to help her do what was too hard for her to do alone  --  exit the fun program and go brush her teeth.  Then I find myself yelling at her, because it's the fourth time I've asked and it's twenty minutes later.  Anytime you've asked that many times, you aren't being effective, and a different, more involved approach is necessary. 
Whether it's picking up a tired toddler who's dawdling or insisting that your fourteen year old help carry in the groceries, you make it clear you won’t reconsider, but you do it while you're still calm. You maintain the peaceful tone in your house, and you teach them something useful about how to manage themselves.  
If you end up screaming, they just feel picked on.  They learn nothing useful and much that is harmful about how to handle their own feelings when they watch you indulge yours at their expense.
13. Don't undermine your child's emotional self-knowledge.  Respect her feelings about others. If she feels uncomfortable letting Uncle Herman hug her, teach her to shake hands.  When a preschooler refuses a repeat playdate with a playground acquaintance, listen to why, try to assist her in problem solving, but by all means let her make the decisions about who she plays with. Affirm her ability to trust her own feelings, including discomfort she can't really identify.  Children need to make their own decisions about relationships from an early age.

14. Model talking about the hard things. Your child may be challenged by a physical difference, an absent father, a learning disability, being adopted, your impending divorce, or his grandfather's alcoholism.  Or he may simply find it difficult to tell you he is terrified of taking tests at school, or feels like his baseball coach screams all the time or the kids on the school bus tease him.

Every child has issues that he or she is afraid to discuss.  And those are the issues where she most needs your support and guidance.  Of course, you first need to overcome your own discomfort with the issue.

You also need regular times when your child can bring up what’s bothering him.  One great way is to have a few quiet minutes at bedtime in the dark, when you ask kids about their day.  What was great?  What was hard?  It's amazing how the combination of dark and impending bedtime often stimulates reserved children to open up.

Tips for Healthy Children and Families

Eating Better
For Children and Families

1. Start the day with a healthy breakfast. It refuels your body and gives you energy for the day.
2. Let kids help plan one meal each week and eat together as often as possible.
3. Eat slowly. It takes 20 minutes for your brain to register that you are full.
4. Eat more vegetables and fresh fruits. Aim for a total of 2 cups of fruit and 2 1/2 cups of vegetables every day.
5. Eat more whole grains (e.g., oats, brown rice, rye, crackers, whole-wheat pasta). Try to eat at least 3 ounces of whole grains every day.
6. Drink plenty of fluids. Choose water, low-fat or nonfat milk and low calorie or diet beverages.
7. Serve a variety of foods.

For Parents

1. Reward children with praise rather than with food.
2. Serve food in smaller portions. Do not demand or reward “a clean plate.” Let your child ask for more if he or she is still hungry.
3. Read nutrition labels for serving size and calorie information. The information on the labels can help you select foods that best fit into your family’s meal and snack plans.
4. Bake, broil or grill foods to reduce fat. Rather than cooking with butter or vegetable oil, try healthier versions like olive, canola or sunflower oil.
5. Snacks should provide nutrients and energy, which are essential for active, growing children.
6. Do not give your child vitamin supplements unless they are recommended by your doctor.
7. Children imitate their parents, so set a good example by eating healthy foods.
8. Keep a variety of snacks in the house, such as fresh fruit, vegetables, whole-grain cereals and crackers. Try lower calorie or lower fat foods, like baked chips, reduced-sugar cereals or low-fat dressings.

Being More Active
For Children and Families

1. Move more. Try to get between 30 and 60 minutes of physical activity every day. Several 10 to 15 minute sessions of moderate activity each day add up.
2. Include regular physical activity into your daily routine. Walk as a family before or after meals.
3. Limit TV, computer and video game time to a total of one to two hours per day. Encourage physical activity instead.
4. Balance energy calories with activity calories. The energy you get from foods and beverages should equal the calories you burn in activity every day. Read our handout on daily calorie needs for more information.
5. Increase household activities (e.g., walking the dog, dusting, vacuuming, gardening). These activities are good ways to burn calories.
6. Include an activity like hiking or bike riding when you go on vacation.
7. Make playtime with your family more active by shooting hoops or walking to the park.

For Parents

1. Move more. Walking is an easy way to be more active every day.
2. Park the car in a spot farther away from the store or your office and walk.
3. Take the stairs instead of the elevator.
4. Get off the bus one stop earlier and walk the rest of the way.
5. Use an exercise machine or lift weights while watching television.
6. Walk to do errands.
7. Be a role model for your children. Do something active every day.

Healthy Habits for Life

1. Write down what you eat: how much, when and why. For example, what do you eat when you're stressed out? Learn more about keeping a food diary here.
2. Record your physical activity: how long, how often and how hard do you work out?
3. Eat only at the kitchen table. Don't drive, watch television or talk on the phone while you eat. This helps you focus on how much you are eating, which can prevent overeating.
4. Put out your exercise clothes the night before as a reminder to walk or work out in the morning.
5. Set goals you can achieve. For example, aim for eating more vegetables and fewer high-calorie foods.
6. Don't "up size" your favorite drink – 32 oz. of regular soda has up to 400 calories! Choose water or a diet drink instead.
7. Eat only until you're not hungry and push the plate away. Don't stuff yourself.
8. Eat only because you're hungry, not because you're bored, tired or stressed. Use alternatives to eating when you're not hungry: take a walk, play a game, read a book or call a friend.
9. Do your grocery shopping on a full stomach. This will help you make healthier food choices, rather than grabbing over-processed high-calorie foods, which can be hard to resist when your stomach is empty.

How Active Are You?

Protecting your Baby from the Sun

If your baby is six months or younger, you’ll need to protect them from direct sunlight at all times. If they’re older than six months, they can handle a litte more sun, but you still need to be very careful as they sunburn a lot faster than adults.

Protecting your baby from the sun will prevent sunburn as well as long-term damage such as premature wrinkles, aging, and more serious effects like melanoma.

As long as you follow these guidelines, you can still venture out into the sun with your baby and enjoy the good weather:

Talk to your doctor about using a sunscreen on your baby. They should be able to recommend one that’s safe, but be sure to test it on a small area of baby’s skin before applying it all over.

It’s best not to be out under the sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. when the sun’s rays can be most damaging.

Find a cool, shady spot so your baby is never in direct sunlight. If there isn’t one, an umbrella should work find. Wide brimmed hats will keep the sun off their head and face if you’re walking in the sunshine.

Protect your baby’s eyes with a cute pair of little sunglasses with UV protection. They’re safe as well as adorable if you can manage to keep them on their face long enough.

Keep your baby’s sensitive skin protected with light-colored, tightly woven clothing. Staying away from reflective surfaces such as water and concrete should also help minimize any chance of sunburn.

Tips for taking toddlers to the zoo

10 Toddler Tips

Toddlers can act up sometimes, especially when they are in new places. Here are some tips to make a trip to the zoo more fun and relaxing for the whole family!



Zoo trips can be a lot of fun, but, as you noted, they can also be stressful when you've got a toddler in tow. Here are 10 tips that will help to ensure that the trip is fun for the entire family.

1. Decide on a family color. When you go on outings and have every family member wear T-shirts and ball caps of that color. Try to stick to something bright and eye-catching like yellow, red or green so that each member of the family will stand out in a crowd. That way, if you momentarily let go of your toddler's hand and he disappears from sight, you'll be able to find him again in a flash. 
2. Maintain reasonable parent-kid ratios. One adult per kid is the ideal if you're hitting a busy attraction. Hire a teenager or invite along an extra relative or two if you've got more kids than grown-ups in your group. This is one of those situations where you don't want to be outnumbered. 
3. If your toddler is out of diapers, find the location of the restrooms in the park the moment you walk through the front gates. That way, you'll know exactly where they're located if your toddler needs one in a hurry. Hint: If there's a washroom near the zoo gates, encourage your child to use it before you start exploring the attraction. That should help to eliminate at least one impromptu sprint to the washroom. 
4. Tape your toddler's contact information to the inside of his shoe -- information that could prove invaluable to the zoo or park staff if your toddler were to become separated from you. If you have a cell phone, be sure to include that number, too (and make a point of bringing your phone with you on your outing). 
5. Be realistic about how much of the zoo you intend to take in. If you're visiting a large zoo, you may need to make a number of different trips on different days if you're determined to take in each and every exhibit. Toddlers aren't exactly known for having long attention spans, after all! 
6. Avoid any exhibits that your child is likely to find particularly scary. If, for example, your toddler is deathly afraid of cats, you might want to bypass the lion cage or the tiger exhibit until he's a little older. Petting zoos are always a good bet. 
7. Consider the temperament of your kids. If you've got a toddler who loves to run away, confine that toddler to a stroller or backpack or -- if he insists on walking -- use some sort of toddler harness or safety strap system instead. 
8. Play games or sing songs while you're waiting in line for an exhibit so that your toddler will be less tempted to wander off. More often than not, it's boredom that causes toddlers to wander. 
9. Make a point of bringing an umbrella stroller with you even if your toddler is usually determined to walk. He may welcome the chance to hitch a ride in the stroller after an hour or two of running off steam! Besides, if you've got older children who are frustrated by the way their younger brother dawdles, popping him in the stroller every now and again will allow the rest of the family to pick up the pace a little. 
10. If you're bringing along a picnic lunch to enjoy -- a great way to cut down on the cost of your excursion, by the way, provided you're actually allowed to bring your own food and drinks past the front gates -- make a point of including some frozen juice boxes. They'll help to keep your toddler's sandwich chilled and, as an added bonus, by the time lunchtime rolls around, your child will have an icy cold drink to enjoy. 

Games to Improve Listening Skills for Kids

Activities and Games for the Youngest

Everyone knows reading to your child daily is important, so make it a game like Shout Out. Using a book with a repetitive word, have the child "shout out" whenever they hear the designated word.

One non-reading game to try is Knock, Knock. Place the child in a chair facing away from you and gather their favorite stuffed animals. Using funny voices, have each "animal" knock, then describe itself until the child can guess which animal is knocking.

The Pattern Game is another one to try. Clap your hands in a simple pattern/rhythm, and have the child repeat it. Continue with more complicated patterns/rhythms. (You can even introduce thigh claps or head taps to make the game harder as the child gets better at it.)

Games for Older Children

Older children can try games like Then, which requires two to play. The first child makes a statement that ends in a "then." The next child adds a statement that finishes the sentence: First child: "The boy throws the ball, then..." Second child: "....the ball rolls down the hill."

A tricky one for groups is Stump the Leader. One child is picked out to be the leader. The other children take turns asking the leader questions while picking a word that can't be used. For example, "How old are? You can't say 10" so the leader can say "I'll be 11 on my birthday."

A fun game for kids of all ages is "Who's talking now?" Pick one of the children's favorite television shows. Let them watch a little bit then have them close their eyes. At random points say "Now" and let them tell you who was talking. The kids never notice they are learning to listen.

Listening is an important skill for children to learn. Simple can let them work on those skills with the bonus of getting them away from the television and video games. The skills learned young will follow them to adulthood.