When a child receives a new toy that they absolutely adore, you’d have an easier time moving mountains than getting them to detach from it. All parents have that one toy that their child refuses to let go of, be it a teddy bear, a blanket, or a teenage mutant ninja turtle figurine. Luckily for you, we’ve come up with a number of tips that you can use to get your child to leave his teddy bear at home.
1. Personalize the object
Personify it, praise it, assign it a name, an age, a character. “Teddy is a sweetheart, isn’t he? I’m sure he likes playing with you.” For children, especially girls, referring to the object as a baby is a definite go.
2. Give a reason
State your reason for the object or toy having to stay at home: “Teddy loves to play, darling, but he’s tired now, he needs to get some rest”. If this proves ineffective, another option is to assign the object a role in the house. “Teddy needs to take care of the house. Or Teddy needs to guard the car while we’re gone”.
3. Involve your child
Involve your child in saying goodbye to the object: “Tuck Teddy in, now, give him a kiss! Goodnight Teddy!” or “Put Batty down there, so he can get a nice view of the car. Now say bye to Batty, we’ll see him when we get back!”
4. Comfort your child