Submission by Kim L.
Broad Range of Parenting Tips:
First parents need to go by instinct and stop reading so many
psychology books by people who aren't even parents.
People need to make promises not threats. Never
threaten your child with something you will not follow thru on.,
If you say your are going to do something you do it.
No more, " If you do that again I'm gonna........" .
Parents need to be parents to their kids not their friends.
They need to disappoint their kids once in awhile. We
all can't have everything we want. Parents need to have a
stern voice when disciplining children. You cant just go
around saying "Oh honey now don't do that, that's
not nice. They need to know by your tone that you mean
business.
Respect is the key. Kids
respect themselves and they will respect others. Also,
After you punish your child and he/she has been on time out for 5
min explain to them why they are being punished. A lot
of the time they do not even know why they are being punished.
Especially the younger ones. I always sit my son
down after he has been punished and explain to him why. Then
we discuss the problem and then no more problem. I have
people who think I should open a boot camp for kids because their
kids listen to me and not their own parents. That is
really sad. They know my rules and what happens if they
break the rules. I have a house full of boys all day. Even
with all the rules they keep coming over everyday and playing
here. They enjoy having boundaries. It makes
them feel like someone actually cares about what they are doing
and cares about them.
Submission by Samantha J.
I have some ideas that I've heard have worked for other parents
that I think are good to share with everyone.
Connect with your Child: When tucking your child in at
night, ask your child two questions, "What's the saddest
thing that happened to you today?" and "What's the
happiest thing that happened to you today?" Then you
share your answers with your child as well. This is a great
way to learn about their feelings and find out what is going on in
their lives.
Chores: Sit your child down and ask them what they think
needs to be done around the house. Then tell them what you
think needs to be done. Cut a piece of paper into several
strips and write down a chore on each piece. Tell your child
that at (pick a time) this time each night everyone will pick one
or two chores from the chore box and that will be what chore they
need to do that evening. This way your child feels as if
it's a game and he/she was part of making the decision.
Expectations: Many times children don't know what you are
asking them to do. If you say "Clean up your room"
to a 4 year old they might think you mean, throw your clothes in
the closet. Take time out to explain your expectations so
that when they've completed the task you can give them the
compliments they deserve for a job well done. Try not to
tell them what they've done wrong after they've done a
chore. Remember that when a 4 year old cleans up it's not
going to be as clean as if an adult did the job. Give them
the encouragement and thanks so that they'll want to help you out
the next time.
Submission by Sherry J.
Reward Slips: Create good behavior reward slips to
encourage your child to listen. Cut a piece of paper into several
strips. Write simple rewards on each slip. You can
even sit your child down and ask what he/she would like to get for
rewards. Examples are: 1. Turn this in to get out of doing
one chore. 2. Turn this in to get extra hugs. 3. Turn
this in to play a game. 4.Turn this in to get an extra book
read. 4. Turn this in to get to stay up an extra 10
minutes. 5. Turn this in the watch a tv show of your
choice. 6. Turn this in to play a video game.
If you catch your child doing something good during the day, hand
him a reward slip and thank him for the good deed. He can
then decide when he uses his slip. He can save it for another day
or use it that same day. Make the rewards simple things.
Your child will never know when you're going to spring a reward
slip on him and he'll strive to do good deeds so that he gets one.
Submission by Katie T.
Routines: Get your child on a daily routine. Children
seem to behave better when they know what is expected of
them. Set aside a specific time for your child to have
independent play time. Schedule a time for your child to do
his homework each day. Let your child know that after dinner
is the time when you'll play a game with him each night.
Also create a bed time routine. At the same time each night
tell your child it's time to brush his teeth and get into his
pajamas, if your child takes a bath nightly work that into a
scheduled time. Then help your child unwind a bit before
bedtime by reading a book. If your child doesn't want to go
to sleep allow him to look at a book in bed with the lights on for
30 minutes. Most of the time he'll be asleep when you return
to his room to turn off the light. Let him know that if he
gets out of bed during those 30 minutes that you'll turn off the
lights and expect him to go right to sleep.
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