In article ,
Ann Porter wrote:
We are having varying degrees of success. "Please" and "thank you" are
actually the hardest. He seems to think that saying "please" means he has
to "plead" with us, which is not what we're going for at all - we just want
him to ask a polite question, rather than issuing a demand. I prefer "May I
have some chocolate milk, please?" to "I want some chocolate milk."

When I heard "I want some chocolate milk" I would ask them to please ask
using a polite sentence beginning with "Mom". Somehow, having to put the
name of the person you are addressing at the front of the sentence (i.e.,
"Mom, may I please have some chocolate milk?") helped them remember the
please and the correct tone and everything else. Hope that helps. Two
down, one to go...

--Robyn