Distractable Kiddos

[ValarDisneyus]

We just went to a kiddo's museum with all sorts of play areas and exciting interactive games and things. My sweetie four year old was running all over the place, often assuming we were right behind her. I was doing my best, but does anyone have suggestions on how to teach her to be safe when she wants to go see something at Disney World? She's 4, and while she's very smart, she's right on with her development for being VERY in the moment; the same kind of kid who can talk about cleaning up city parks and recycling's being important and then leave a room and drop whatever she's carrying in any old place because she's done with it. I know kid harnesses are a thing, but....I'm not sure it's a good solution for our family.

We are renting a stroller, but I'm fairly certain she'll want to walk at least some of the time.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

Your options are:
1. Stroller
2. Hold her hand
3. Chase her
4. Get a handle for the stroller for her to hold on to and be prepared to chase her
5. Attach her to you in some way (harness or wrist strap)

Unfortunately there aren't a lot of options. Above all, you want to keep your child safe regardless of how it looks.

 

[kmb584]

Stress the importance of hand holding and staying close to you. I used a harness backpack with my daughter until she was 2 1/2 but since then (now 5) she's been great with sticking close and/or holding hands.

 

[ValarDisneyus]

Your options are:
1. Stroller
2. Hold her hand
3. Chase her
4. Get a handle for the stroller for her to hold on to and be prepared to chase her
5. Attach her to you in some way (harness or wrist strap)

Unfortunately there aren't a lot of options. Above all, you want to keep your child safe regardless of how it looks.

Yeah, I think our options are really going to be a 1, 2, and 4 combo.

I took her with me on a mile walk the other day to get her used to it, we weren't even a quarter of the way around when she started asking "Mommy, why are we walking so LOOOONG?"

Of course, at Disney, I'm sure it won't seem so long because all of it is fresh and new and exciting, but I'm sure we'll be able to convince her to take the leisurely stroller route soon enough.

I REALLY hope I'm not kidding myself.

 

[Luv Bunnies]

It's very important to teach them at that age that safety is not negotiable. I work with preschool kids and they are very capable of holding hands and walking with us. They can easily understand and follow our rules, and these are special needs kids with language delays. They just need to be told over and over what you expect. You need to be very consistent in your expectations. It's also important to tell them ahead of time, and often during the activity, what you need them to do. Using a stroller is best since they can look around as much as they want without having to concentrate on where they're walking.

If there's a time when she's walking, tell her she needs to hold your hand and is not allowed to try to pull her hand away and run off. If she does, address it with her immediately. Reiterate what you expect and let her know that running away is not safe. If she's doing a really good job of walking with you, reinforce her by saying, "Good job walking with me!" If she asks to stop and look at something, tell her that, yes, she can stop and she did a great job of asking instead of trying to jerk away from you. If she does try to jerk away, let her know it's not OK. Prompt her to ask if she can stop and look at something. Have her ask correctly before she is allowed to stop. After a while, it will become second nature, but it takes time. Practice before your trip at a mall or local attractions. With consistency and reinforcement, she should be good to go for the trip.

 

[DisneyRegulars]

Yeah, I think our options are really going to be a 1, 2, and 4 combo.

I took her with me on a mile walk the other day to get her used to it, we weren't even a quarter of the way around when she started asking "Mommy, why are we walking so LOOOONG?"

Of course, at Disney, I'm sure it won't seem so long because all of it is fresh and new and exciting, but I'm sure we'll be able to convince her to take the leisurely stroller route soon enough.

I REALLY hope I'm not kidding myself.

May I suggest finding a nature trail to walk on. My son is 4 and we went on a camping trip recently and he walked 4 miles on a hike. We were shocked! We expected to have to carry him for 3.5 of it. Every weekend since then we've gone on a walk in the woods. Gets the Disney walking training in, but completely reduced the whining. Trails with water and trees to scramble over, or dry river beds are best.

 

[J'aime Paris]

It's very important to teach them at that age that safety is not negotiable. I work with preschool kids and they are very capable of holding hands and walking with us. They can easily understand and follow our rules, and these are special needs kids with language delays. They just need to be told over and over what you expect. You need to be very consistent in your expectations. It's also important to tell them ahead of time, and often during the activity, what you need them to do. Using a stroller is best since they can look around as much as they want without having to concentrate on where they're walking.

If there's a time when she's walking, tell her she needs to hold your hand and is not allowed to try to pull her hand away and run off. If she does, address it with her immediately. Reiterate what you expect and let her know that running away is not safe. If she's doing a really good job of walking with you, reinforce her by saying, "Good job walking with me!" If she asks to stop and look at something, tell her that, yes, she can stop and she did a great job of asking instead of trying to jerk away from you. If she does try to jerk away, let her know it's not OK. Prompt her to ask if she can stop and look at something. Have her ask correctly before she is allowed to stop. After a while, it will become second nature, but it takes time. Practice before your trip at a mall or local attractions. With consistency and reinforcement, she should be good to go for the trip.

This.

 

[MSSANDRA]

If i read your ticker right, you are almost 8 months out from your vacation. that is a lot of growing up time for a four year old and she may even be close to five at that point. At appears that will late April/ early May,after Easter/spring breaks, before school is out, so crowds should not be crazy. I too have a few thoughts on ideas. While I am not opposed , and even sometimes will encourage a harness for a toddler, I do think 4-5 is older that what I would encourage for a non-special needs child. I would for sure bring a stroller, and if possible, one easy for her to pop in and out at will or at your request. I would work on her staying with you anywhere you are, and work on her asking to see something that she wants to see. WDW is going to be very different from a confined children's museum where most kids do run freely. The pure multitude of people will help to prevent that. I would follow the idea that "if you can not see me, I can't see you and then you are not safe." It makes kids that are at that level of thinking to stop and think. I would not make hand holding an absolute rule, There are often places where the paths are not crowded and letting her walk at her own pace (not run) is wonderful and special. I would make it a rule that if you guys say "stroller" or even a fun code word, it means that crowds are too big for her to walk safely and she must jump in the stroller as fast as she can. The number one rule I have is for you guys, not her. Take turns being the watcher and one of you know at all times that you have your eye on her. Trade off and the other one be in charge of checking ARDs, or fast pass or whatever. Kids mostly are lost because someone else thought that the other was watching the child. We were at a large flea market yesterday and we had eight adults and DS7. I made sure that either I or DH had our eyes on him at all times even though he was constantly going between adults. Also be sure that you have ID on her just in case. Show her what a CM looks like and what to do if mom or dad gets lost. Don't scare her, but prepare her. Be sure she knows you cell #, but put in somewhere on her just in case. I did that though about age 5.
As far as the nature walk...YES YES YES.....that type of walk is so wonderful for bright curious little ones. Make the rule to stay on the path, and then let the go and explore at their own pace. We have GREAT memories of mountain trips where we did this for hours.

 

[ValarDisneyus]

These tips are great! We are a positive reinforcement family, we often thank her for using her words when we know it was a hard choice for her, for using manners, for making good choices, etc. I also really hope the next 8 months do help her mature a bit. I love the "secret fun word" and "assign a parent" notes, those are things I never would have thought of. Thank you everyone!