23 October 2007

Discipline without yelling or spanking

Lynne Reeves Griffin, author of the new book ‘‘Negotiation Generation: Take Back Your Parental Authority Without Punishment,’’ doesn’t believe in spanking, yelling, negotiating - or even giving children time outs. Griffin doesn’t think any of these punishments work. It may sound as if Griffin advocates a hands-off parenting approach, but her strategy for getting kids to behave is exactly the opposite.

According to Griffin, parents need to set firm non-negotiable limits for their children, explain to their kids what those limits are and then help them follow through. And if kids try to test those limits, parents shouldn’t talk. Instead, they should avoid discussion, expect their kids to behave and take action to make sure they do. For example, if a child is supposed to turn off the TV and come to dinner, for example, don’t call him 10 times and tell him repeatedly to turn off the television. Tell him once and then step over and turn off the TV, Griffin said.

Let's try it out to see if this suggestion works.

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