I would love to think that time-outs were the ideal disciplining method to curb unruly behavior and bad attitudes, but sometimes they are not. They are a good first method to try and hopefully it will work. It does not harm the child physically. It is also not too harmful regarding their self-esteem. Once the time-out is over and done the previous activity can resume. I tried time-outs many times. I was hoping that it would eventually work. It did somewhat, but not as well as I had hoped it would. Initially, time-outs were me holding my child in his … Continue reading →

A new study claims that the more a child is spanked, the lower his IQ is. My first thought when I heard the study was that perhaps the child with the lower IQ was less obedient and that is why they got more spankings. The study also claims to refute that point. For the life of me, I can’t imagine how hitting a child on the butt removes smart cells from his brain. The whole study just seems very peculiar. According to a MSNBC article on the subject, “Straus and his colleague Mallie Paschall of the Pacific Institute for Research … Continue reading →

Read any parenting book and it will probably give you a chapter or two on discipline. Some are very specific and detailed with their lists of what disciplinary techniques to use for which circumstances. I have found, however, that while it is great to have a good variety of discipline techniques in one’s tool bag, it is also important to consider the temperament of the child and to choose discipline that works and fits the individual. Not every style or philosophy works with every child (or with every parent.) For example, as a busy single parent, I learned long ago … Continue reading →

There is plenty of debate over the best and worst ways to use the word “no” in parenting. Some think that the word is overly negative, that using it too much discourages children from taking chances, while others think that raising a child without the word “no” is setting them up for future troubles and a lack of understanding about boundaries and limits. Where do you stand on the “no” issue? Do you think there can be both good and bad points about using this word in our parenting? As with most parenting issues, I tend to take a rather … Continue reading →

Ask any parent and they can probably tell you all the things they have done wrong in the past week. We tend to focus on where we need to make improvements, all those times we made mistakes or where our weaknesses keep us from being the most perfect parent however. Focusing on our weaknesses, however, seldom makes us better parents. It is playing up our strengths as parents that can make us more effective. It just seems to be human nature to hone in and feel self conscious of our weaknesses. Or, perhaps it is cultural for us having been … Continue reading →