Disciplining Your Kids
These tips will be very helpful in training and disciplining kids
Let you rules be clear
You should let your child know exactly what he or she shouldn’t do. If your child exhibits a bad behaviour that you have not discussed, use that an opportunity to discuss it; tell him/her it’s bad and the consequences (s) he will face the next time it happens.
When you have to mete out punishment, do not omit explaining why you are punishing such a child especially when they are much younger. Sometimes, you may ask the child why he or she is being punished and allow him to explain in order to ascertain that (s) he understands why such behaviour is bad.
Consistency
Once you set you rules and have communicated them clearly such that your child knows what will happen when (s) he breaks the rules, make sure you follow through when there is a defaulting. This should be set according to the age and maturity of your children.
Maintaining consistency is one of the best ways to instil discipline in your values and teach them the importance of values.
While you may forgive bad behaviour or allow your children to negotiate their punishment every once in a while, it is very important that you maintain consistency. If you are inconsistent and do not follow through on what you set as consequences of actions, your child will notice this and will capitalize on it to manipulate you.
Pause when angry
You should correct your child as soon as possible when you notice bad behaviour but you need to hold off on this rule if you notice that you are angry.
It is better to discipline a child from a place of calmness and objectivity. If you take some time too cool off, you may realize that what was done was not as serious and this will prevent you from overreacting.
When you are calm, you may also realize that your anger was not about the behaviour of your child or correcting wrong behaviour. It may be that you are in a bad mood or you are ab=ngry about something else that is making you testy.
Avoid correcting publicly
As much as you can, avoid punishing your child in public places in the full glare of everyone. In situations where this is inevitable, make sure you calm and firm in your behaviour. Discipline a child in public is not the best because it may be humiliating to the child and sometimes it becomes a tool for manipulation.
No matter how badly your child has behaved in public, it is better to deal with issues at home when you are much calmer and where there no strangers to intrude.
Avoid yelling
Shouting at your children is not a good way to discipline them. It is abusive and you’re indirectly teaching how to yell at others to get their way. Maintaining calmness is very important when disciplining a child as this is a good way to show who is in charge.
Avoid Beating
Spanking or beating a child can easily get out of hand especially if you are angry. Besides that, it tells the child nothing about what (s) he has done and why he should not do such. Beating is violent and is setting an example of violence for the child.