8 Ways To Discipline Children And Get Great Results

The majority of us go with parenting the way we were parented as children, and we expect that our kids will comply just as we did. But if the methods for disciplining children used by your parents simply aren't cutting it with your child, it's time to trial something new.

Unfortunately no single child disciplining method works for everybody. All children are unique and have different personalities, so so while certain ways to discipline children may work with other kids, they might not work with your child.

Bearing that in mind, the child discipline tips outlined below may or may not work with your child, but they're definitely worth trying:

Take Away Whatever Your Child Enjoys Most.

An effective technique to discipline children is to take away whatever it is they value most as a consequence for their bad behavior - this might be an object, an activity or a special privilege.

For example, this may be taking away a favorite toy for the rest of the day or not letting them watch their favorite television program that afternoon. Remove the thing that you child will miss the most so that your discipline message gets through loud and clear.

Keep Consequences The Same Each Time.

It's crucial for your child to be completely aware that every single time they repeat a certain bad behavior they will be dealt the same unplesant consequence.

For example, if your child does "Action A" they should be absolutely sure that they will always be dealt "Consequence B" not perhaps "Consequence C" or "Consequence D" or whatever else comes into your mind at that moment. If your child knows that the rules always stay the same, they are way more likely to abide by them.

Don't Give In To Your Child.

If you give in to your child while they are whining, crying, arguing or throwing a tantrum, you are effectively teaching them that this type of behavior is how to get their own way.

And once they have come to this conclusion, they will continue repeating this unwelcome behavior in an effort to get their own way more often. Children will cotton on to this idea even if you only cave in to them ocassionally. So remain strong, firm and stick to your plan, and your child will soon learn that this kind of behavior will get them nowhere.

Avoid Repeating Instructions Over And Over Again.

Give instructions to your child with only one warning after that clearly reminding them of what the consequences are for not completely the task. Just one warning and then apply the consequences. Don't go on repeating the instructions over and over they were given two opportunities to get the task done, thats enough.


Let Your Child Make Choices.

Whenever possible, give your child 2 alternate choices to allow them a feeling of independence and a certain level of control. It can be simple things like a choice between taking out the garbage or feeding the pets for older kids, or for younger children it could be a choice between picking up all the red blocks or the blue blocks. As a disciplinary measure, if your child is fussing over getting dressed in the morning, giving him or her two outfits to choose from takes their focus off the battle over getting dressed and allows them to feel like they have a little control.

Ask Your Child For Their Help.

It might seem difficult to believe if you're struggling with a defiant child right now, but the reality of the matter is that all children are born into the world programmed to be helpful and cooperative.

And you can tap into this natural tendency whenever you like by giving your child a job to do that will avert or defuse a tantrum.

Avoiding a frustrating battle with your child over getting into their carseat can be as simple as giving them the special job of being the boss of the seatbelts to help keep everybody safe.

Or when your child is misbehaving while you are grocery shopping, try giving them the job of being your 'lookout' to find particular grocery items.

This is a really effective technique to put a rapid end to undesirable behavior and in the process give a nice boost to your child's self-esteem.

Make Good Behavior Fun.

It's sounds odd, but disipline actually can be made fun for children. The simple fact is that your child is far more likely to be compliant when they are having fun. Challenging your child to a race to see who can put away a set number of toys the fastest is much more likely to prompt them into action than bluntly ordering them to pack up their toys.

Offer The Opportunity For Redo's

We've all had the uncomfortable of wishing we could take something back as soon as we blurted it out. Weve all done it. You can give your child an opportunity to take back something innapropriate they have said or said to you in a rude way by allowing them a 'redo' to say it again in a more respectful tone. Allowing redos is a great way to avoid a big fight and instead position yourself to discuss the core problem in a calm fashion with your child.

Redos are also a wonderful learning tool when it comes to teching your child that speaking to people calmly and respectfully is a much better way to get someone to listen to them.

Find A Better Way.

No two children are alike, therefore no particular child discipline plan works for everybody, which is why it is important to explore a range of parenting methods and disciplinary strategies to find what works best for you and your child.

Even if you you feel like you have already tried all the available ways to discipline children, the reality is that you haven't, and there's still hope for solving your parenting problems.

It's just a matter of finding an effective set of child disciplining techniques that fit your style of parenting and are designed to help you best discipline your challenging, spirited, stubborn or difficult child.