A teaching moment

Isn't it a good feeling when one can take an ordinary moment and use it to teach a child something without even realizing it? Take for instance the other day when the boys were being particularly difficult and not doing what I had asked them to do. In desperation I said, "If you don't start listening and doing what you're supposed to, you're going to experience the wrath of mom". (Definitely not my best mommy moment I admit.) Jacob then asked what wrath meant so I told him it was the negative consequences of making me angry.

Later that day I heard Jacob very sternly say to Kyle, "If you don't help me pick up these toys, you're going to experience the wrath of Jake!"

So in an ordinary moment, one can introduce a new vocabulary word, use it in a sentence, define it and then hear her child use it appropriately later in the day.

What a great teaching moment.