Question: Range of resposibilities for children

What is a good range of responsibility for a 4 y/o w special needs? He just got glasses. How accountable should he be held for the whereabouts of thoe glasses? Coats, hats, gloves?

Answers:

Advice from Schoolfamily

LiviaMcCoy writes:
I do not know what you mean by him having special needs, so the answer to this may depend on the nature of those needs. I like to take a positive approach with children this age. They need to develop habits of responsibility for their belongings, but this takes time. I would start by helping him every single time when he takes them off. Ask him, where he should put them so he can find them again. Then, help him to put them there until it becomes a habit. You may need to repeat this many times until he does it on his own. Some people (even adults) are really good at this and others are terrible at it. I still forget where I put my keys! I like to use logical consequences rather than punishment to help them learn.

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Advice from Schoolfamily

cmccarthy writes:
Depending on your child’s special needs (visual, hearing, processing, etc) it might be a good idea to start with only one item, for example the responsibility of the eyeglasses. When my children were very young lost shoes were always a problem, especially when we were in a hurry! I traced the shoes on colored contact paper and stuck the paper to the closet floor. When shoes came off they immediately sat on the paper “shoes” in the closet. You might try something similar with a picture of eyeglasses, in a specific spot. It could be a place on his bureau or night table, for example. As long as he consistently leaves them in that spot, he’ll always know where to find them when he needs to wear them.