This is my first Works-for-me-Wednesday...so here goes!

I decided at the beginning of the summer, that my kiddos were going to have limits on their TV time and computer time. I didn't want to spend all summer telling them that they had watched enough tv, or been on the computer long enough. I knew that whining would ensue! So...I printed up two little tickets for each child, one Computer Ticket and one TV Ticket. Each ticket is worth 30 minutes of time. The computer ticket can be broken up into time increments if they want (play 15 minutes now, 15 later...etc) and can be used for our Wii or the computer. The TV ticket is worth one show or video...but only 30 minutes! If they want to watch a full length movie, they must combine their tickets! This way each child gets to pick one show each day. They get to watch a total of 90 minutes of TV. They can also share their computer time if there is a game they want to play 2 players...but it's their time that is clicking away. I keep a kitchen timer on the computer desk to keep track of the time.

Once the child has played their computer time, or picked their TV show, they give me the ticket. The tickets are kept on clips on the fridge...so each morning I just replace them. Oh...and they can't use their tickets until their morning jobs are done. They must have their beds made, be dressed, and rooms must be picked up (which isn't usually a problem since they are supposed to be picked up before they go to bed).

This has eliminated so much whining! No more "Mom, PLEASE, just one more show!!!" or "But he/she got to play longer than me!!!" Nope...just hand over the ticket and the choice is made. Plus, if they misbehave or act disrespectful, the punishment is that they loose a ticket for today (if they've already used today's tickets, they loose tomorrow's). This has worked so well for me!! Hope someone can use it, too! I'd love to hear if someone uses this and it helps their family!

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