Wish my 100th post could be about something better, but... ugh.
So recently Nettie is prone to throwing tantrums if she even slightly disagrees with you. Screaming 'no' and picking up random things just to toss them on the floor again. Just being a brat, in general. Today, I sent her to church with Tucker (cause I woke up reeeeeally late), cause she enjoys being in Nursery. Well, 20 minutes before church is supposed to be over, Tucker comes home with her saying she was kicked out for "being disruptive" and not behaving. She's turned into that kid that you always tell yourself your child will never be. :(
Granted, she's only a brat half the time; usually she's an absolute doll. I'm not sure if this is just a phase for her or not. It's entirely possible that she's just not getting disciplined properly, which then is all my fault cause Tucker only sees her for maybe two hours a day.
I'm going to try being more earnest with timeouts this week; maybe that will help a bit. I don't want to resort to spanking cause I don't want her to learn hitting (but I think she's already picked it up from somewhere cause she tried hitting me earlier when she was having a tantrum), but honestly, I was spanked as a kid, and I remember being so afraid of getting spanked again that I wouldn't even dream of doing "bad things" again. I don't want Nettie to be afraid of me though...
Anyone have any advice?
I've tried explaining to Nettie why she can't do something or whatever the situation may be, but she's so beyond listening during her tantrums that I doubt that works, and that's the sort of thing that people seem to say you're supposed to do. Do we just stick with timeout? Do we wait for her to mature a little bit more?
Just ugh...
1 comment:
Kids first begin learning right from wrong because they don't want to be punished. Be firm and consistent with your chosen method of discipline, and she'll learn.
No matter what your chosen discipline method, though, the most important thing to know when dealing with tantrums is that kids throw them to get attention. By talking to her during them, you're essentially rewarding her. When my students threw tantrums, I would pick them up and put them in time out without a word. If they got up, I put them back, again without a word. They were only let out of time out once the tantrum stopped. It meant a couple half-hour time outs for some kids, but they learned pretty quick that I don't tolerate that behavior, and the tantrums stopped. Interestingly enough, these were also among the kids who loved and respected me the most out of any of my students.
Immediately after the timeout is the best time to talk to her about why she was in time out and why this behavior is wrong. The incident is still fresh on her mind, but because you waited until she stopped pitching a fit to pay attention to her, you remain in control. Keep it short and simple for two year olds, then ask for an apology. Be sure to accept it with love, so she knows all is well again.
Best of luck! It takes a lot of love and patience to deal with tantrums, but I'm sure you can do it.
Post a Comment