We are now over 1 full week being electronic free. The kids are still yearning for their beloved devices, but I am staying strong, not giving them 5 minutes of game time.
We are all doing very well without them. Stress levels are much lower, screaming and fighting has diminished, however, attitudes remain about the same.
Austin – struggling so hard in school. I was called to the school yesterday, to walk him to the office, as he was not doing classwork in the classroom. He absolutely refused. Teachers and counselors tried to get him to the office to do his work there, but he just turned away from them. They did mention that they would need to call me, but he just ignored that. So, I was called, drove over there, and got him situated in the office with his work. He felt overwhelmed with the assignment, and acted like he didn’t know what to do. I tried explaining that he would get to go to the school library just as soon as he finished this particular assignment. He wasn’t excited about that at all. He acted like it was painful to go in there, as it took forever, like they were in there for a long time. Later, in the evening, it boiled down to this. He is upset at his teacher for changing his log-in on the school chromebook. He says he is so mad, and doesn’t trust the school staff, doesn’t like school anymore, just wants his password changed back. I tried explaining that it wasn’t her, it was the school district that changed it. He was abusing the privileges and changing things around on the chromebook, which belongs to the school. He did not have permission to do these things. He was going into sites that he shouldn’t have been going to. (He truly is too smart for his own good.) He had been the classroom IT guy.. Everyone came to him, even teachers for help on their devices. He can fix anything. This truly is a gift.. But, he took advantage of some of this, which is why we are where we are now. So, the challenge is, getting him to engage in class, focus on the tasks, and care. He truly doesn’t care and that’s the problem here. sigh.. oh Austin…
Autumn – she loves to pick and poke at the siblings who will respond to her the most. That hasn’t changed… She’s doing well in school, playing well with Adam, engaging in creative play, and seems to be enjoying it, just fine without any devices..
Adam – He’s enjoying creative play, jumps right in to do an activity on his own, without even a sigh or a complaint, begging for his computer.
Allie – misses playing the Sims on her computer right now, but she’s got a great attitude about it, being part of this initiative.
Overall, we are doing great, I’m working on getting them more involved in the housework, and playing as team in our household. It’s slow and steady steps toward the ultimate goals, but we’re making progress, and that’s a huge WIN there.
I think I want to incorporate some relaxation techniques with them, like some yoga.. we’ll see how that goes over with them.
🙂
All in a Day 