Thursday Night

 I'm not sure how she landed on video clips on Dodge Ball matches but she's rather glued to the screen while I write down the layman alphabets for Hunters' Chorus and checking the tune on the violin.

At one point, she exclaimed - Eeew, that's disgusting! 

I was like - Don't say something like that. 

Kiki- But that man kissed another man! 

Me- Oh, then that's disgusting.

Me- Why did he kiss another man?

Kiki- The other guy is lying on the floor.

Me- Oh, perhaps he's doing CPR? Trying to save the guy's life?

Kiki- But he's alive, he is not dead. 

Me- That's the point of CPR 嘛.

whatever. 

So her music school always lets them collect a stamp (ink stamp) after every lesson the kid completes. After filling up a page of 20 stamps? I think it is 20 but I'm not sure cos it always seems like it takes a long time to fill up the page with stamps. So anyway, after filling up the page, the kid could then select some trinkets of toys from a basket full of small toys, erasers, stickers, pencils etc. 

Kiki collected this hook-puzzle few weeks ago and it is considered a very simple one. But still, it is time consuming to keep trying until solved. After un-linking them, putting them back is yet another challenge. And then the process repeats. Until such time when you've memorised the sequence or technique, or that the solution comes to you naturally; every attempt may feel like the first. But we like games like these. Maricar also likes. 

So ya, as I was reading about "Happiness", it says that high value rewards or a promised reward for children, does not work well in the long run. It says that the kid may interpret the task as challenging or difficult, hence your enticement with a reward. Also, medal and trophies equates to hard work required, hence the task at hand may be viewed as being extra tough (turn-off). Also, rewards like these loose its effects. More often than not, many skills, learning and discovery are fun for kids. A praise for real effort and progress is often sufficient. (Flattery is harmful) For more challenging skill-tasks, it says a "surprise" reward would work better. That means you could surprise the kid with a reward when he is not expecting it. The element of surprise and joy would stick better and that as long as the kid enjoys the learning, it is child's play. 

Whatever the case, self-initiated motivation surely outweighs stimulated motivators.