Just before sleep, each person names three things from the day that were good — the smallest ones count most. A patch of sun at lunch. Something funny someone said. The parent goes first with something real and ordinary; the child follows. Ending the day on something specific and true shifts the last waking thought away from friction and toward what the day actually held.

How to do it

1"Three good things from today. Yours first. The smallest ones count."
2Child names three. Receive each one without comment or evaluation.
3Then you name three too. Keep yours ordinary and real.
4Do this every night for two weeks before deciding whether it works. It usually does.

Variations

**Korb-Tür:** If they can't think of any or say "nothing was good": "That's okay. I'll say three for both of us." Name them yourself.
**Ausstieg:** Then you name three too. Keep yours ordinary and real. That's the closing moment before sleep.

💡 Parent tip

Name your own three with genuine specificity. 'The coffee was good this morning' is more honest than 'I'm grateful for you.' Specificity gives the child permission to name small things rather than performing gratitude.

What your child develops

Attentional direction — consciously searching for positive moments builds a habit of noticing them during the day
Narrative consolidation — naming the day's good moments encodes them as memories worth keeping
Emotional regulation at sleep onset — closing with three good things lowers cortisol in the transition to sleep