Habit Tracking For Kids: Does It Work?

Habit tracking involves keeping a record of daily habits you want to develop, monitor, or change. Often, people use habit tracking to help them implement good habits like a daily meditation practice, taking medication on time, following through with a morning or nighttime routine, or virtually anything else. But what exactly defines habit tracking, and how do you use it? Perhaps more importantly, does habit tracking work for kids?

In this article, we'll discuss what habit tracking is, whether kids can use it, and how to teach your child how to track their habits. Then, we'll talk about how Joon can help your kids develop healthy habits, routines, and self-care practices.

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What Is Habit Tracking?

First, let's define habit tracking. Habit tracking refers to keeping a record of daily habits to help with habit change or formation. Someone may use habit tracking in attempts to reduce behaviors they want to stop (e.g., staying up too late) or to increase or implement new, healthy activities, such as exercise or cleaning. With the rise of app-based habit trackers, many people use these to record activities, check in with themselves, and self-motivate. However, habit tracker apps aren't necessarily the only way to track habits. People can track habits in different ways, and not all of them are digital. 

Can Children Habit Track?

Kids can use habit tracking to build good habits just like adults or teens. Even preschool-aged kids can use habit tracking to help them get a hang of age-appropriate routines and obligations, like brushing their teeth or putting toys away. Habit tracking is a great way to increase independence in kids alongside other benefits. The key is to make it child-friendly and fun. To do so, you might use a habit tracker app designed for kids, or kids might keep a physical record of their habits. Here's what that might look like.

Apps

Habit tracker apps are popular among adults, but did you know that they also make habit tracker apps for kids? Downloading a kid's habit tracker app is a convenient way to teach kids how to track their habits. The digital route may be ideal for busy kids. You can find habit tracker apps for Android, Apple, and other devices.

Charts

If you prefer to avoid additional screen time or your child's not yet ready to use apps, you can print or create your own habit tracker chart. A sticker chart, journal, planner, or checklist can be helpful for families who take this route. You might even be able to find a free printable habit tracker online. Pick something that'll be fun for your child to look at by making it colorful or otherwise appealing to your specific child.

How To Teach Your Child To Track Their Habits

If you decide that family habit tracking is right for your kids, you may wonder how to teach a child to track habits and implement good habits effectively. Follow these steps to help kids track habits, make progress, and find success.

Choose the habits

First, it is important to choose the specific habits you want a child to implement. Make sure that they are realistic and age-appropriate. Exhibiting good behavior at the market, finishing chores, and doing homework are all examples of habits a family may want to encourage in a child.

Discuss the habits with your child

Once you choose realistic habits for your child to implement in their life, discuss them with the child. Explain exactly what the habit should look like clearly and specifically, and ensure that your child understands the expectations. If you intend to use an app or physical habit tracker chart, you can also show your child how to fill it out at this point in time. So, if you're using a chart to track habits, you might present that to them during the conversation.

Create the habit tracker

Once you know which habits you want your child or family to implement, it's time to create a habit tracker or choose a habit-tracking app. There are digital habit trackers created for the whole family to use as well as ones designed for kids only. 

Family habit tracker apps can be a fun way to begin tracking, and they can also be helpful in the sense that a child won't feel left out. On the other hand, those designed specifically for children often have special features that make them fun for a kid. 

When you go through habit tracker ideas, the most important thing to keep in mind is to decide on something that is sustainable for your unique child and family. Make your habit tracker simple, engaging, realistic, and low-stress.

Note: Need a way to motivate kids that works? Try Joon, a to-do app created for kids with ADHD and related disorders that doubles as a game. Click here to get started.

Consistently fill out the chart

It's important to stay consistent for habit tracking to work. To help you and your child stick to it, determine when you'll realistically have time to fill out the habit tracker chart or app each day. For example, you might pick a specific time (e.g., 7 PM) after dinner or before bed because you know that you'll most often be home at that time.

This is part of how habit tracker apps can be helpful, especially with ADHD. A habit tracker app will usually have the option to set reminders or get notifications. You can use reminders to help you and your child remember that it's time to use specific habits, and you can also usually opt in or out of getting notifications that remind you to track habits in the app.

If a physical chart is best for your family, you can still use digital reminders to fill out the chart if you want to.

Celebrate healthy habits

Positive reinforcement is often valuable in habit formation or change and motivation. In people with ADHD, positive reinforcement is particularly powerful and is known to support cognitive task performance. Parents may use verbal praise, small objects, experiences (like going to the park), or reward systems to celebrate their child's progress with new habits. Token systems and apps like Joon also make for excellent rewards. Taking a moment to reflect on and congratulate your child out loud is often regarded as supportive and can be helpful in making good habits stick, so consider using verbal praise either on its own or alongside other ways to celebrate healthy habits if they respond well to it.

Takeaway 

Habit tracking can promote self-awareness, help individuals take better care of themselves, find success at their job, school, or other parts of life, and aid motivation. Parents can teach their kids how to track habits as a way to set them up for success. There are different ways to track habits. Most often, people use a habit tracker app or a physical chart. Use the tips in this article to teach your child how to track habits. Implementing new habits takes time and practice, so remain patient with the process and don't hesitate to try different approaches until you find what works.

How Joon Can Help Your Child Build Positive Habits 

Joon is an excellent tool for cultivating good habits in kids. Designed uniquely for kids with ADHD and related disorders ages 6-12+, Joon is a kid's habit tracker, to-do app, and game all in one. Here's how it works:

Parents install the Joon Parent app first and make a customized task list for their child. Children connect with a separate app called Joon Pet Game. You and your child can use the same device or separate devices. When kids finish the real-life tasks you assign to them in the Joon Parent app, they get virtual rewards in Joon Pet Game that allow them to care for a virtual pet, called a Doter. Since kids must finish tasks to move forward in the game and take care of their Doter, Joon helps kids focus and get used to finishing their daily habits and routines.

90% of kids who use Joon finish all of the tasks their parents assign. Even better, the app is child-safe and backed by professionals such as child psychologists, teachers, and occupational therapists. Joon is rated an average out of 4.7 stars in the app store, with consistently positive reviews from parents like you.

Click here to try Joon for free.