Alberta

×

Saskatchewan

Stay tuned. New campus coming soon - Downtown Calgary!

With chilly weather comes more layers; and with more layers comes more drama from our Little Ones! Getting your child dressed can be a challenging job so here are some tips and tricks to maintain your and your child’s “cool” this winter season!

  • Pre-teach – Before you even think about pulling out that marshmallow snowsuit, consider how much your child understands about why they need to wear these clothes. Teach them about hot and cold, the seasons, and weather. Learning happens when the child is calm and engaged, not when they are thrashing about, trying to avoid a hat being placed on their head.
  • Use tools to help – Take pictures of every article of winter gear your child may use to go outside. Print them and place them in order of dressing; from left to right, or top to bottom, on a larger piece of construction paper. Now you have a visual aid to show your child the steps of getting dressed. Having a tool like this promotes independence and alleviates anxiety in children as they know what is coming next.
  • Make it fun – Offer them choices (ex. do you want the red mittens or the green mittens today?). Arrange a scavenger hunt and hide all of their winter clothes throughout the house for them to find, or make it a race to see if they can get their coat on faster than you can. Everything can be a fun interactive game if you really want it to be. The more fun a child is having, the more learning will be happening. Always remember that children learn through play!
  • Celebrate the wins – If your little one cannot stand wearing a hat, but today allowed you to put their hood up – celebrate that win! Progress can be slow, so we take the wins where we see them. Be patient and persistent . You’ve got this!
  • Promote independence – Minimize your repetition of instructions, and try your best not to phrase your directions as questions. Keep it simple and tell your child what they need to do. Allow your child to attempt the task and remind them you are there to help if they need it. Step in to support before your child escalates to the point of being upset. We want to push their boundaries with challenging tasks, not defeat them by expecting too much from them.

With these tips and tricks in your back pocket, you can now work towards a calmer dressing routine to get outside and explore our Canadian winter wonderland.

 

Written by Melissa Sawatzky, Behavioural Coach at Kids U

Opening Hours

Braeside Campus

Mon - Fri

7:00 am - 5:30 pm

Sat

-

Opening Hours

Bridgeland Campus

Mon - Fri

7:00 am - 5:30 pm

Sat

-

Opening Hours

Centennial Campus

Mon - Fri

7:00 am - 6:00 pm

Sat

-

Opening Hours

MCKNight Campus

Mon - Fri

7:00 am - 5:30 pm

Sat

-

Opening Hours

New Brighton Campus

Mon - Fri

6:30 am - 6:00 pm

Sat

-

Opening Hours

Strathmore Campus

Mon - Fri

6:30 am - 6:00 pm

Sat

-

Opening Hours

Walden Campus

Mon - Fri

7:00 am - 5:30 pm

Sat

-

Opening Hours

West 85th Campus

Mon - Fri

6:30 AM - 6:00 PM

Sat

-

Click to listen highlighted text!