In last week’s email, we were introduced to Lena — a movement-seeking, hyper-silly kindergartener who hates being told what to do. Today, I want to zoom in on her resistance to instructions and transitions.
As you can imagine as a parent, this affects all parts of every single day. We are in charge of keeping these tiny humans fed, clothed, clean and attending school— and kids don’t just do this on their own. They depend on our instructions and prompts to get through everyday.
On the surface, it looked like Lena simply didn’t want to listen. In fact, her mother said that it seems that Lena had “no intrinsic desire to do anything.”
She didn’t listen to her parents’ instructions or the visual schedules that were in her room, bathroom and living room. Getting ready for school was stressful, and the bedtime routine was nearly impossible.
Requests like “put on your shoes,” “have a few bites,” or “come brush your teeth” were either ignored, or met with full on battle mode. And the more urgent or time-sensitive the transition was, the more intense her resistance became. She would only use the toilet if prompted, but prompting her to use the toilet caused her to fight back.
