Archive for the parenting tips Category
May 5, 2009
Set clear expectations for your child’s behaviour, and explain why you want them to behave that way.
By the age of one or two most children can understand more words than they can say. That means they can start to learn from the explanations you give them.
All of us can think of times when we have gained someone’s co-operation by providing them with an explanation.
Managing children’s behaviour is no different. Explanations tell children what, why, or how. Be clear about what you want your children to do—and what you don’t want them to do.
Explain to your child how their behaviour affects others, or why you want a request to be followed.
Reflect on a recent incident with your child, and what you said to them. Did you give a clear explanation? Did your child understand? Did you behave in a way that maintained a warm relationship between the two of you?
Thanks to Plunket for today’s tip!
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May 4, 2009
Create a safe learning environment where you can say “yes” more than “no” to your child, so they can explore, learn and develop their curiosity.
Your child is born to be curious. They need to experience the world through their senses. This develops learning pathways in their brain, which are the foundation for your child’s future learning.
It is important to create a safe “yes” environment for your child so they can explore freely and be curious without hurting themselves or others, or breaking precious things.
Thanks to the Ministry of Education’s Team-Up for today’s tip!
[Editor’s note: Of course, we’d like you to say YES too – on the upcoming referendum!]
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May 1, 2009
Children see, Children do.
Managing behaviour of kids doesn’t have to be a mystery. Stepping into their shoes and seeing the world from their eyes is often quite revealing. That could mean asking yourself why they might be doing what they’re doing and what your own behaviour is saying to them.
Children explore and experiment to find out about the world and their place in it. They climb, taste, poke, jump, touch and ask a million questions to make sense of what’s around them and learn where their boundaries are.
Guiding all this exploration by making sure they stay safe and have plenty of new things to learn about means you’re helping them develop the skills and understanding they need for the years ahead.
Consistency is the key – always behave in the way you want your children to.
Thanks to Plunket for today’s tip!
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April 30, 2009
Take notice when your child behaves well, and reward them in a small way.
Much of the time kids misbehave, a large part of it is to attract attention. Try though we will, most of us focus most intensely on our children when they’re behaving badly. If we take the time to focus our attention on them when they’re not misbehaving then the won’t feel the need to be outrageous to get the attention they crave. And when they go out of their way to be nice, be sure to give as much positive reinforcment to them as possible; reward them with praise, a hug, or a small treat in exceptional cases. Result: better behaviour without the need for physical discipline.
Thanks to Dave Moskovitz for today’s tip!
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April 29, 2009
Would you like your kids to behave better? Make sure they are getting enough sleep.
A recent Finnish study of 280 healthy children showed that children who slept the least were the most likely to display the kind of symptoms associated with ADHD. The findings suggest that maintaining adequate sleep schedules among children is likely to be important in preventing behavioural symptoms… even an additional 30 minutes per night has been shown to give a major improvement in behaviour.
The Finnish study resonates with another recent study by the University of London which linked sleep problem in children to later emotional and behaviour difficulties.
Thanks to the team at DIYFather.com for today’s parenting tip!
