2.3, old enough for sticker charts???

[izzybiz]

My Dd is 2.3 and still in a cot, she is also very addicted to her bottle, most night she still wakes a couple of times for a bottle of milk.

I was thinking about changing her cot into a bed and getting rid of her bottles all in one fell swoop.
Changing her bed routine alltogether. I thought i might do a sticker chart for when she sleeps in her bed with no bottle, do you think she is old enough to grasp the consept? usually if she has stickers she wantsthem all stuck somewhere at once!

tbh, going by my own experience, I'd say not. I think the whole thing of sticker charts is what awaits them when they get enough stickers, rather than the joy of stickers themselves, and it might be too long for a 2.3 year old to wait to get a reward. My 5yo never usually gets the reward at the end, whereas my 7 yo will try as hard as he can to get as many stickers as poss..

Similar experience with dummies, Dd wouldn't sleep, rest etc without a supply of dummies at bedtime(despite not having them during the day). We made a big thing of getting a "big girl bed" and bought pretty bedding etc. We also gave her dummies to the dummy fairy which she was thrilled about. Since then, she couldn't care less - we braced ourselves for sleepless nights, but they didn't materialise. Sometimes, knowing that something just IS NOT available, can do the trick.

I think they are too young at that age to appreciate the notion of waiting for a reward. A sticker is meaningless. A kiss, cuddle and praise has for more meaning at this age. Sticker charts drive me mad anyway, but I would say that anything of that ilk isn't suitable yet

Thanks, I think i will start on Sunday night and just hope for the best! I did think she would be a bit young, like i say she would just want all the stickers at once!

I would say the bed thing on its own wouldnt be a problem but she might get a shock if you take away the milk as well. I would personally go for one at a time, milk first then bed. Agree that too young for stickers.

As a nursery nurse, I would say that sticker charts are ok, providing they are relevant and are used in such a way that the child can understand. My 2.6 yr old loves stickers all over the place, particularly on surfaces where the blighters wont come off. A sticker on its own isnt reward enough in my opinion, but they can be used as a means to a good reward, something the child will appreciate.

As for changing the bedtime routine completely, I would go along with what someone else said (sorry, I'm new!) and introduce the changes gradually. Maybe offer the child a drink of warm milk before bed time and firmly but nicely tell them that they can't have anymore?? Just a thought but I agree that too many changes could cause the child to regress and that would be a nightmare!

Good luck with it though. Would be interesting to hear how it goes !

I would do one at a time, probably starting with the less stressful.

With DS and the bottle, I explained why he shouldn't have them anymore, and asked him to look at his teeth in the mirror so he could see how the bottle was separating them (I have not yet seen milk teeth that are not at least slightly separate especially if they are compared to those of a grown up). The explanation worked perfectly, he only asked for another bottle once and that was after 2 weeks.

As for the bed... the transition has been very soft, he got his new bed but the cot stayed in his room as a bench so... he used it during the day for a few days and since then he just seems to have forgotten about it.

I started sticker charts in the womb with the use of
Alphabites, smiley faces and Space invader crisps.