The Crazy Notion About Punishment and Child Behaviour – Encouraging Kids to More Positive Behavior – Step 1

After a long absence, I look forward to get back to blogging and helping adults create environments where kids “thrive, learn and cooperate”!

“Where did we get the crazy idea that in order for kids to do better we have to first make them feel worse?” This is one of my favourite quotes of Jane Nelsen, author of Positive Discipline.

If you are parent (or caregiver or teacher) and are struggling with challenging behaviours with the child(ren) in your life, the first step in moving a child towards more positive behaviour is to give up the notion that punishment brings about long-term change. Oh, it might bring about a lull in the behaviour temporarily but I challenge you to think about what children are actually learning from punishment.

Punishing kids generally results in power struggles, rebellion, discouragement or can even create a revenge cycle.  It also creates major disconnection between the adult who is punishing and child receiving the punishment.

Punishment is basically an attempt on the part of adults to control children’s behaviour. Reality is, we can’t control children’s behaviour. Period.  Nor can we control what a child is thinking, feeling or deciding.

We can, however, highly influence children’s behaviour if we use Positive Discipline methods that teach children to learn from their mistakes rather than “pay” for them through punishment.

Think win/win! Lots of positive tools to replace punishment as well as create positive change in children’s behaviour coming your way over the weeks to come!