If You Teach Your Kids These 4 Skills Now, They’re Less Likely To Act Bratty In The Future
Does your child think he knows better than adults, including you? Don’t worry, most kids do this from time to time!
But when a child or teenager’s behavior goes from normal limit-testing to outright defiance and even trouble-making, how can you reason with them or get them to listen? There are ways to parent a defiant kid, teaching them respect without crushing their spirit or their sense of independence.
In fact, the best way to keep your kid from being bratty or defiant is to nurture their independent thinking within reasonable confines, to listen and show them respect and to teach them social skills. In turn, they are more likely to show respect toward others.
Teaching kids these four skills helps prevent brattiness and defiance in the future
1. How to make good decisions on their own
Using open-ended questions and reflective listening not only helps eliminate a ton of unnecessary friction with your kids, it also gives them a social skill that can prevent behavior problems in the future.
Rather than telling your child, “You need to stop arguing with your teachers”, ask, “How do you think your teacher feels when you speak out of turn? What impression did you mean to make? What made what you had to say so important? How can you say this without seeming to argue?”
This allows your child to consider others’ thoughts and how their behavior can negatively or positively affect others.