When do you have to stop reminding them?

[pinkthechaffinch]

DS is in Y4 and is 8.9

He is very forgetful of things that don't interest him, i.e getting his book bag, jumper, homework etc.

But I am getting very fed up of continually having to remind him over every single thing on a school day.

Am I expecting too much? Is this normal?
He doesn't get into trouble at school for forgetting his homework so no incentive there for letting him forget and take the consequences.

Yesterday, I asked him specifically to remember 2 things (too boring to go into here!) and that I would be very pleased with him if he could manage to remember them. he knows I am much more forthcoming with reats etc if I'm pleased. He did not remember.

I think the main problem is that he is so busy keeping up with his peers that there is no head space left for life's mundanities.

Post here if you have an annoyingly forgetful child

Get him a pin board so he can write notes and put them on it. In the morning/evening he will have the reminder there. Then leave it. If he forgets something, so be it. He's not bothering because he knows you are going to remind him anyway.

My DH is always too busy thinking about other things to worry about lifes mundanities. Not sure if that counts

Oh, and if he has forgotten something he just shrugs even if there are consequences. Nothing ever bothers him

Ds2, 8.8yo is just like this. So is his brother,ds1, 12.5yo

Ds1 has got marginally better since starting high school last year, where they get punished for not remembering PE kit or homework. After 4 or 5 detentions he soon started remembering

Like Crispy, my dh never remembers stuff like this - and he is 46! Even when there are serious consequences he quite often forgets stuff/loses it/books things up for the wrong date etc. It is very rare for dh to leave the house without either a) coming back in for something he has forgotten a few minutes later or b) phoning up later to say he has left something vital at home.

And ds (aged 9) is very similar. Practically evry day he comes out of school having forgotten something, and I have to send him back in for it.

I really don't know how to get either of them to remember stuff!

You have to keep reminding him until you stop! You are letting him be forgetful by picking up the pieces. Let it go and sooner or later he will forget something that does matter and he will learn. There are lots of men out there who are allegedly grown up and still do this because their wives have taken over the reminding from their mothers!

Mine were the same. I think the answer is to stop and let them take the consequences but I was never able to do it. They operate perfectly well away from home, which proves they could do it all along if they had to.Unfortunately you want the best for your DC so you want them to have homework in on time etc.