When promoting self-care it is important you demonstrate how do to things by breaking down the routine into simple steps and state each step one at a time with positive and clearly stated instructions, to simplify steps even further, you could take a photo of each step in the routine and post it where the routine takes place, making it more simple for a child to understand the routine. For instance, with hand washing, you could post photos above the sink. As you state one step at a time, show your child the photograph to illustrate what needs to be done. When teaching the child to do each step, demonstrate how to do each step by showing them how it is done with gestures, role playing specific routines, singing and making it exciting for the child as they learn, so they could enjoy learning about the routine and not lose interest. After the child begins to learn the steps of the routine, you can take turns showing each other “how” to do the routine, always be prepared to provide the child with reminders about what to do as they might of forgotten, never put a child down when they have forgotten a few steps of a routine as they are still learning, as a practitioner you should simply model and say, ‘Look, do this,’ and show how to do the step that is causing difficulty.
