RESEARCH

Children’s Miracle Music is a FUN musical game that gets children (and spouses) to CLEAN THE HOUSE, get ready for SCHOOL ON TIME in the mornings and into BED ON TIME at night... WITHOUT ONE WORD FROM THEIR PARENTS!

This fulfills three needs that every mother (or person who knows a mother) is desperate to find a solution to. The response, to the small amount of marketing that has been done to let mothers know that Children’s Miracle Music exists, has been overwhelming! Word of mouth alone has made it spread like wild fire!

Without Children’s Miracle Music, mothers have to fight with, and nag, their children to do what they want them to in order to get ready for the day. This leaves the mother and child frazzled before the day even begins. Their relationship also becomes damaged. Then, the mother usually has to spend the rest of her day cleaning the house and doing the laundry and dishes. She does this because it’s easier to do it herself than to try to get anyone else to help. When evening comes around she has to start the whole frustrating nagging routine all over again in an effort to get her children into bed at night.

WITH Children’s Miracle Music, mothers are able to PRESS A BUTTON, on their CD players, and children run to clean the house and get ready for school ON TIME by playing a FUN musical game! It instructs each family member (including the parents) on what to do and exactly when to do it which enables them to: 
  1. Be ready for school (and work) ON TIME in the mornings.
  2. Be ready for bed ON TIME at night.
  3. Have the laundry, dishes and house cleaning done first thing every day by doing what’s called an "Act of Kindness" for 10 minutes each morning and 10 minutes each evening. The "Act of Kindness" is where each family member quickly and happily cleans their chosen area of the house in an effort to show kindness to their family.
Fifteen years of research and testing was done before Children's Miracle Music was created.  As I researched, I found that the two biggest frustrations in a family are UNDEFINED and UNFULFILLED expectations. Children's Miracle Music defines who should do what and exactly when and how long they have to fulfill it.  Frustrations in the home are then replaced with feelings of love because the family is now happily working together to serve each other without being asked to.  This defining of tasks and knowledge of when and how fast they will be fulfilled enables parents to have peace of mind to do other things with their day knowing that there is a specific time when their home will be cleaned, the laundry will be done and the dishes will be taken care of.  Peace of mind also comes from knowing exactly who will do each task without having to ask them to do it.

Another part of my research was in trying to find a way to get necessary tasks done QUICKLY and happily each day so that families could have time to do important things with their lives.  As I did this I came across a document where testing had been done on children's brains.  It showed that children actually have not developed the capacity to understand time frames.  So, when children are told, "We have to leave in five minutes", they really don't understand what their parents are saying to them and consequently don't do anything to get ready.  When this happens, parents usually think that their child is ignoring them and get angry.  The testing, in the document, also found that children ARE able to understand time frame through MUSIC.

Children's Miracle Music uses music as a timing mechanism which enables children to understand the passage of a specific amount of time as they accomplish each of their tasks.  The music is also used to change their attitude to one of action because of the fun upbeat rhythm in the music.  They then have the capability to do what they should AND the motivation to do it... ON TIME!

Testing was done to find out exactly what length of time family members should have to accomplish each of their morning and evening responsibilities.  The time had to be quick enough to keep someone focused on what he was doing but slow enough to be manageable. Many families tried out different morning and evening schedules in an effort to find out which responsibilities should be included, what length of time was needed for each task and what the smoothest and most motivational transitions were in going from one task to the next.

The Children's Miracle Music game has NINE fun motivators to help families WANT to do their necessary tasks each day.  None of them include threatening, counting to three, repeating words over and over...  They are:

  1. The specifically timed, FUN upbeat music.
  2. The positive affirmation at the end of each "point".
  3. The challenge of being able to accomplish the task before the music ends.
  4. The receiving of a "Point" every time a task is finished before the designated music ends.
  5. The breakfast that can be eaten when their "Act of Kindness", "Get Dressed", "Make Your Bed" … points are completed.
  6. The self-esteem building "Star" sticker that is received on each family members hand if all eight points are earned in the morning or all four points are earned in the evening. The star sticker, on the child’s (or parent’s) hand, reminds them that they did something great that morning and that they are appreciated for it.
  7. The positive affirmation that is received when the "Star" sticker is given. (It’s part of the directions.)
  8. The self-esteem that builds up each time the "Goal" is set and accomplished using the "Points Chart". The goal setting enables family members to have something uplifting to look forward to, anticipate and have the satisfaction of easily achieving on a DAILY and bi-weekly basis.
  9. The individual attention that the child (or spouse) receives when he goes out on his "Private Date", with either his mom or dad (or spouse), once his 100 points is EARNED on his "Points Chart".

During my researching, I also found that You Do What You See.  If there are pictures of models hanging on the walls of a home, children will most likely have a desire to be a model.  If horror movies are what is played in a home, children will most likely think about, act out and be afraid of horror scenes.  The same is true with what children see their parents do.  If parents happily and quickly participate with their family in maintaining their home and getting ready for the day and evening ON TIME, their children will see that this is how families run successfully and learn how to do their part also.  This is one of the reasons that the Children's Miracle Music game is designed for the whole family to participate in playing.

I felt, as I put the game together, that family members shouldn't compete against each other to win when they played the game.  Children should grow up feeling happy for others who achieve their goals instead of having a desire to beat them.  True success happens when one can become better than his past self.  The Children’s Miracle Music game has individual successes by having each family member win when they individually reach 100 points.  In our family we all clap and cheer when one of us reaches our 100 point goal.  This gesture of family unity, in supporting the good efforts of each family member, builds confidence, self-esteem and a feeling of being loved.

A "Private Date" was chosen as the ultimate reward in the Children's Miracle Music game because I felt that close family relationships are what we should value most in life.  The game helps to reinforce that this desire is our "Goal".  This is done by having family members write down which parent (or spouse) they would like to go on their date with, and where they want to go, on the "Goal" section of the "Points Chart".  Then, when 100 points is earned, emotional bonding time between parents and their children, and parents with each other, AUTOMATICALLY takes place on a regular basis (about every two weeks).  Taking time with our children is something we all WANT to do but Children’s Miracle Music gives it a DEADLINE and therefore it gets done.  My husband always writes, "Golfing with mom" for his "Goal".  It’s a great motivator for him and we love driving around in the little golf carts together.  Who knew that golfing could be fun?

Family members EARN their date, and accomplish their goal, when they reach 100 points.  One point is received every time a task is accomplished before its designated song ends.  Because a family member has to EARN (or work for) his date AND he anticipates how his date will be for two weeks before he goes, he is motivated to physically and emotionally participate in making the date successful. This participation opens the door for emotional bonding to take place between the parent and child (or between spouses) and consequently they become best friends. When a parent takes his child on a date that he hasn't earned, the child usually subconsciously feels that his parent is there to entertain him and has an attitude that the parent can’t possibly do enough to make him happy. The door for emotional bonding stays closed.

One of the "Points" on the Children's Miracle Music game is called an "Act of Kindness".  It's where each family member has ten minutes to take care of their "area".  An area is a room in the house or making breakfast, doing the dishes or doing the laundry.  Each person gets to have two "areas" to become a "pro" at.  One area is done every morning and the other area is cared for every evening.  Learning how to become a "pro" at taking care of an area takes practice and research.  For instance, I took my eleven year old to a janitorial supply store so that he could learn how to best take care of his bathroom.  The owner trained him to do some most amazing and eye opening cleaning tricks.  We bought the special tools necessary for him to practice his budding talent.  When we got home he asked if he could clean the toilet then or if he had to wait until the music came on.  His attitude came from me being a self-government trainer instead of a taskmaster. 

When children learn how to do something well, they develop self esteem.  Just like practicing, and becoming good at, playing the piano and the self esteem that comes with it, each family member should continue to practice the SAME "Act of Kindness" each day until they become GREAT at it.  Switching from piano to violin after only a month or two wouldn't give a person time to learn their skill and develop their self-esteem from knowing that they are good at something.  Learning life skills needs the same daily practice for an extended period of time.  Family members can learn how to become talented in their area of the house if they practice it once a day, when the music comes on, and ask questions to professionals who can train them on WHAT to practice.  Caring for an area not only increases talent in taking care of ones home, which skill can benefit them DAILY thier whole life, but it also gives the caretaker a great feeling of security in where they live.  They feel ownership in their home which gives them a feeling of belonging and security in thier surroundings.

I over heard my eight year olds friend ask him why he didn't get paid to do his chores.  If I paid my son to do his "Act of Kindness", it wouldn't be an act of kindness anymore.  I would become a "boss" and my son would become my "worker".  He would not get the joy that comes from caring for his area SO THAT the people he loves can have a clean place to live.  You serve those you love and you love those that you serve.  Service = Love  I want my son to LOVE his family by having a chance to serve them.  Receiving money to do a "chore" would never train my son to care for others JUST BECAUSE he wants to show them that he loves them and he would never have the true happiness that comes from selfless service. 

Paying my son would make it so that he would not feel that his area is HIS (It would be mine and he would be helping ME by cleaning it).  This would take away is desire to do it on his own and to become good at doing it.  He would stop asking others to please put their things away when they leave them in his area.  He would loose his sense of belonging because the home would not be partly his.  If I paid him to care for the very places that he already benefits from, I would be subconsiously telling him that he is an outsider coming into MY home to do work for me.  No wonder so many children feel lost. 

The Children's Miracle Music game makes it exactly clear WHAT is expected from each family member and WHEN they should do it.  Then each family member SEES that EVERYONE in the home needs to do their part because everyone is doing it at the same time.  The goal is to TRAIN our children how to become successful adults that have the skill and desire to care for themselves, their surroundings and to help others, NOT to give them a free ride so that they grow up and become an adult who thinks that they should continue to have a slave who does everything for them like they had while they were in their  parent's home. 

Another part of my research led me to the game of work.  What if you told a bunch of guys to get together on a hot Saturday (their only day off during the week) and jump on each other in the mud.  Then you told them to crush each other to the point of breaking bones…  They would probably think you’re crazy and ignore you.  If, however, you made a game out of that same situation by giving them short and long term goals, challenges, points, skills to become good at, strategies, and rules to follow…  They not only would DO what you wanted them to, they would also have millions of people pay big money to come and watch them do it!  They call these hard tasks “Football".  Millions of people love to play it because it follows the guidelines of the game of work and therefore it’s fun to do.  These same principals are incorporated into the Children’s Miracle Music game.  They make it possible for housework and getting children to do what they should (which aren't nearly as strenuous as football), FUN and exciting!

The Children's Miracle Music game makes it possible for families to instantly have a FUN and simple system which trains children to have the following deep and lasting life values.

  1. It trains children to be self-governed instead of parent governed. (Children’s Miracle Music is so fun that children WANT TO and are ABLE TO use it even when their parent’s aren't home. It’s great for babysitters.)
  2. It trains children to have a high self-esteem as they see themselves be able to accomplish their goals on a daily and bi-monthly basis. They are also able to hear, from their parents, how valuable they are to the family at a specified time during the game every day.
  3. It trains children to have the skills of getting their necessary tasks done quickly and happily each day so that they can become responsible adults and have time to do what's important in life.
  4. It trains children and PARENTS in developing positive emotionally close relationships as they, on a consistent basis, become closer on their "Private Dates".
  5. It trains children to serve others, and specifically their family members, as their chores are transformed into "Acts of Kindness" for their family.
  6. It trains children to set and accomplish short and long term goals.
  7. It trains children to become good at time management skills.
  8. It gives feelings of security and belonging through having a positive and consistent daily routine.
  9. It provides feelings of family unity through simultaneous and even distribution of work in the home.
  10. It trains children to know how to have fun as they work hard to quickly accomplish a task.
  11. It trains children to learn math when they, twice a day, add two figures together and then get a total each time they write down their points.
  12. It trains children to have fun in life and to look forward to happy times on their "Private Dates".
  13. It trains PARENTS to put playing with their children (and their spouse) at the top of their "To Do" list approximately every two weeks.  This is a big way to help keep their marriage strong and intimate and to continue a positive relationship with their children as they grow.
  14. It trains PARENTS to give their children, and spouse, daily positive affirmations that build their self-esteems.
  15. It trains PARENTS to be good examples as they daily model the doing of tasks the way that they want their children to do them. 
Children’s Miracle Music is simple and easy to use because it doesn't have any small parts. This enables small children to be safe around the product and keeps mothers from having to look for lost parts.

Children’s Miracle Music is TRANSFORMATIONAL instead of INFORMATIONAL. There are millions of parenting books that give great suggestions but parents are then left to try and figure out how to implement those ideas. Children's Miracle Music automatically implements these great parenting values into homes instantaneously.

With only the PRESS OF A BUTTON, parents can automatically change their roles from Taskmaster to Self Government Trainer! This enables children to grow into responsible, self-governed adults. Families are also able to have more love at home, the house work gets done by everyone in a short period of time, happiness is found and close emotional bonds are created.

MOST IMPORTANTLY, Children’s Miracle Music is FUN! This is what makes the game really work which is why parents can’t live without its miracle once they have seen its success in their own home!

The challenge of being able to accomplish the task before the music ends.

Children's Miracle Music - The Game