The Highlights

The Tricky Part: The Power Struggle

The struggle is real! I know as a parent of a child this age, you already know this. Once the session becomes a power struggle it can be hard to get things back on track. Here are a few tips to help us avoid this (or work with it just in case it happens).

Bring Small, immediate rewards

Kids this age love rewards, and small, immediate rewards work best! Bring a little snack they can enjoy every time they’re doing a great job so we can reinforce that! I really love mini marshmallows for this, but any small treat they can eat quickly is perfect.

No Bigger and Better Rewards

One situation that quickly spirals into a place where we DON’T want to end up is the Bigger and Better Rewards Cycle. If your child is NOT performing for the camera the way you’d like, please DON’T offer anything other than the reward you had already discussed. Child recognizes quickly that you will continue to offer better incentives as long as they are misbehaving. It’s very hard to come back from this.

Stick to the reward you discussed at the beginning of the session. If your child doesn’t earn it, then they shouldn’t recieve it.

Direct Attention to the Positive

One thing that sometimes works when children this age are not responding to rewards is to direct positive attention to the behaviors we’d like. Allow the child to take a moment away from the session, and we’ll direct all our attention and praise to the individuals who are participating in the session the right way. Your child really wants your attention (especially at this age). Often these kids will see that the best way to get it is to come smile for the camera and they’ll slowly make their way over to join in.

Snacks

Bring snacks for just before the session, and make sure your child is well fed. Let’s avoid hangry kids!

Naptime

Try to avoid scheduling sessions during (or right before) child’s nap time. We want to get well-rested, happy babies in the studio. If baby’s nap schedule has recently shifted, let me know as soon as you can so we can talk about rescheduling to a better time for your baby.