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Happy rewards with happy meals #imlovinit

2014-04-13 11.59.54

When Madison was in second grade, she struggled in math. It was terrible. It was not that she could not do the math work. She did fine with that. It was the timed tests that were killing us. She is a perfectionist. She does her work slowly. It is literally a battle we have every night doing her homework (and still is). As you can imagine, some nights her homework can take hours. Besides sending her to tutoring after school, I had to do something else. Now, I remember seeing something on tv about getting people (especially kids) to do what you want. You basically need to find their currency. Now, McDonalds is not an everyday food for us. McDonald's is a treat in our house. My kids love the food and love the toys. (Can I tell you how happy they are that McDonalds now has Skylander toys?)

2014-04-13 12.00.43

Madison’s currency was McDonald's. We first gave her the goal of finishing her math timed tests. She did not even need to get 100%. She just needed to finish the test itself. When we started this, Madison was not even finishing half the test. I found math worksheets online and every night when she finished her homework we would practice a timed test. We did this over and over and over again. She would tell me each week how she did on her timed test, and if she finished, we would go to McDonalds on Friday night for dinner. McDonald’s makes food to order, so there is definitely something there for everyone in my family. Once Madison could finish the test consistently, we then worked on getting a 100% on each test. If she got 100% on her timed math test, we then again went to McDonald's for dinner on that Friday. With white meat chicken breast in the Chicken McNuggets and 100% beef in the hamburgers, this made a great reward. Madison favorite part of the Happy Meal (besides the toy of course) is the apples in there! She usually eats them first! All I know, we had some great family dinners, and by the end of second grade, timed tests were no longer our nemesis!

Disclosure: Compensation was provided by McDonald’s via Mode Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of McDonald’s.

Lisa Martin

In April 2006, Lisa began blogging to stay connected with distant relatives and friends. As she delved into blogging, she discovered the potential to assist others by sharing her experiences. Lisa has actively engaged in numerous exclusive media ventures. Notable among these are her participation in events such as the Sony Mommy Bloggers Event, the Pampers Mommy Bloggers Event, the Epson Event in Chicago, the Stouffers Event, a memorable yacht excursion with Lands End, collaborations with 1-800-Baskets, an exclusive tour for bloggers by Mrs. Prindable’s, partnerships with Hallmark, PopCap games, Chicago Cubs Mastercard Priceless Events, and Rug Doctor. In addition, she has collaborated with Nutrisystem on a weight loss initiative, teamed up with Buick and Chevy, and served as a brand ambassador for Sprint. Lisa's collaboration portfolio also extends to Disney, where she has participated in press trips for significant movies such as Frozen, Guardians of the Galaxy, McFarland USA, The Good Dinosaur, The BFG, and Cars 3. Notably, for projects like Frozen, The BFG, and Cars 3, she was granted the privilege of walking the red carpet and conducting interviews with celebrities. The impact of Lisa's blog has gained recognition, with The New York Times referencing her content. Moreover, she has been featured in interviews by respected publications such as the Southtown Star, The Chicago Sun Times, and inside.

This Post Has 2 Comments

  1. Maryann D.

    My son always loved McDonald’s Happy Meals also. I like that they give the apples now too and he enjoys them and this is a nice reward too!

  2. Bad for health

    In my opinion the McDonalds Happy Meal is nothing more then a (very smart) marketing trick from McDonald’s. All around the world children love the Happy Meal. Its clear that this menu item is specifically developed for young children. As a result of the fancy box, the toys and mcdonalds marketing machine we forget what its really is: an unhealthy box with fast food. The small parts of apple do not change this. Strikingly I’m buying it (once in a few months) for my children as well. I can only “admire” McDonalds for launching the happy meal.

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