How To Effectively Discipline A Difficult Child
How To Effectively Discipline A Difficult Child
If you ask people for advice about administering discipline to a difficult child you may hear conflicting ideas. Some people have old fashioned notions when it comes to such matters and they believe that yelling or spanking are acceptable methods. However, research indicates that such harsh disciplinary practices can actually do more harm than good. A child whose parents yell at him learns that it is acceptable to solve problems by raising his voice. Similarly a child who is spanked learns to resolve conflicts by resorting to physical violence. So if yelling and spanking are wrong, how do you discipline a difficult child in a way that works?
Different Techniques
There are numerous techniques that can be used to discipline a difficult child. If, for example, the child is very young then saying no in a firm voice is often enough to let him know that you do not approve of a certain behavior. However, in the event that saying no is not enough you may need to physically move your child away from the inappropriate activity. Time out and the removal of your attention are other effective ways of disciplining a difficult child who is very young. This involves removing the child to a boring area of the house and ignoring him until he has calmed down. This technique is especially efficient for a child who is in the midst of a temper tantrum.
Once your child gets a little bit older he or she will be able to understand the logic of rewards and consequences. Therefore you can discipline a difficult child by withholding rewards and stopping privileges. For instance, if your child refuses to eat his vegetables at dinner then do not press the issue. Instead wait until he asks for his snack later on in the evening and refuse to let him have it, explaining that this is a consequence of him not eating his vegetables earlier. Similarly if your child refuses to pick up his toys and clean his room don’t try to force him to do so. Instead put the toys into trash bags and put them somewhere out of his reach until he realizes his mistake. Do not forget to give rewards for behavior that meets your approval.
Getting Help
If you are in need of help and would like to learn more about how to discipline a difficult child then you can do so quite easily. There are helpful articles on the subject of proper child discipline on the internet. There are also books all about child discipline that are available for purchase. Furthermore, there are plenty of television shows that offer sound advice about getting children to behave as they should and you can get a lot of good ideas from watching them.
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