Your Child And Positive Discipline

Discipline is an important part of a child’s upbringing, both at home and at school. But discipline must be like a helping hand that assists the child to learn the ways of living in a society. It inculcates in him a respect for the rules and regulations of living among other people in a civilized world.

But the big question is the methodology adopted to inculcate discipline in a child’s life. If a parent or a teacher or a caretaker is impatient or anxious or stressed out by nature, he runs the risk of taking out of his own frustrations on the child in the name of disciplining. Such a person will tend to impose too many restrictions on the child, and be dictatorial in his attitude. That is negative disciplining that will only harm the child’s psyche in the long run, and probably turn him into a rebel against discipline some day.

Against that, positive discipline focuses on “doing the right things” rather than “not doing the wrong things.” A child will always respond to a positive reinforcement that respects his innate qualities and abilities, and encourages him to perform at his best behavior. Positive approach will enhance the child’s self-esteem that is so delicate at a tender age and must be handled with utmost sensitivity.

A critical component of positive discipline is to first of all find time for the child, listen to his points carefully, pay attention to his needs, and try to understand things from his perspective. By giving sufficient time and attention to the child you are giving him great respect, and he is bound to respond back in equal measure to you.

Secondly, it is an important part of positive disciplining to be creative and engage the child in constructive activities. Since an empty mind is a devil’s workshop, it is much better to encourage the child to develop some good hobbies like reading, writing, sports or music. This will channel the boundless energy of the child in the positive direction, and he will begin to gain focus and purposefulness in his life.

Thirdly, it is important to give sufficient recognition to the child whenever he makes any big or small achievement or progress. That will raise the child’s self-esteem, will calm him down, and drive him to do even better in his constructive activities that bring him attention and applause.

On the other hand, a negative discipline approach is a like a vicious cycle, where the more you try to control the child against ill manners or bad behavior, the worse he gets in his stubbornness and deliberate indiscipline. Negative disciplining completely mishandles the situation and finally the parent or the guardian loses control over the child’s behavior totally.

Another important aspect of positive discipline is to guide the child and explain to him the ill effects of any wrong behavior or bad habit. If the child is going wrong somewhere, extend your helping hand to pull him out of the problem and modify his behavior. Once you take the time and the pain to explain things in detail, the child will make an effort to understand and follow your advice.

By: Bizymoms.com Management

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