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At age 2, the typical child begins to develop their personality and strives to be more independent. However, they will continue to have difficulty expressing their feelings, empathizing with others, and being aware of the consequences of their actions. Parents often face the question of how to discipline a toddler who doesn’t listen.
At this young age, discipline is less about punishing than it is about instilling appropriate behavior, praising success, and allowing negative consequences to be experienced with the reason. Little Scholars is a place where your child will feel comfortable to gain new skills of the proper behavior and make you fully satisfied.
What does it mean to discipline a child?
Discipline is the implementation of knowledge to teach, educate and instill skills. This means learning according to the rules established in the family and society.
In order to get results on how to best discipline a toddler, you should teach systematic and regular actions to form in the child the habit of obedience.
How to start disciplining a toddler?
Raising a child, even in the most appropriate way, is not an easy task. Some children are too sensitive and react easily to the slightest criticism. Therefore, there is still a lot of controversy about the correct methods and ways of raising children.
- Always stay in emotional contact with children
Don’t focus on the child’s behavior, focus on how they feel. Key phrase: “Come to me, I will help you.”
- Take it easy
The more irritated the child is, the calmer the adult should be (not cold, but strict).
- Support during a crisis
Your goal is to calm the child; you will speak at a more appropriate time. Limit yourself to what the child really needs to know and do right now: “Stop doing it”, “Use kind words”, etc.
- Stand firm with kindness
This is where the no/I understand method comes in handy. For example: “No, you can’t trim the cat, I understand that you are disappointed with this.”
- Do not go into explanations
At least when the child is hysterical. Control the situation, explain when the child calms down.
- Strengthen your positions
When the child calms down and accepts the limits you gave them, even though it’s been a week since the episode, remind them what happened and how it all finally worked out for the world. Assure them that you will continue to support and love them.
Сhildren have needs
Parents should keep in mind that children are not small adults who can completely control their actions and emotions. Children have their own specific needs. Therefore, it is better to pay special attention to the kind of behavior you are setting as an example.
Are you responding to your child’s emotional needs? Are you using your imagination, patience, and empathy to build mutual trust? These important actions lead to the formation of a role model for your little one.
What should be done to discipline a toddler?
You must use your emotional connection with your child to understand and work on the cause of the problem behavior. Keep in mind that you should not be so concerned with “quiet and order” as with giving the child the opportunity to freely express their emotions.
Take care of yourself: find ways to relax and not get nervous in the midst of the chaos that is an element of childhood.
1.Define triggers
Sometimes disobedience can be prevented by knowing what might be causing it. If your little one loves unrolling toilet paper and wrapping it around everything, simply place the roll on the top shelf where the baby cannot reach them.
If your toddler is looking for all the jars in the store, give them a toy. If your kid loves to draw on the walls, keep the pencils and markers in a drawer and only let them draw in your presence to avoid problems. You can endlessly scold the baby for their misbehavior, but this is unlikely to stop them.
2.Plan ahead
Sometimes in order to figure out how to discipline a sensitive toddler, you need to be one step ahead. Children often make scenes when they are hungry, tired, or upset from being indoors for a long time.
If your child is awake and active in the morning but seems tired and sad during the day, it’s best to plan a trip to the store or doctor when your child is full of energy.
And don’t forget to prepare the child for a change of activity: this will help prevent unexpected reactions and possible confusion.
3.Keep calm
Does the child pull the dog’s tail or refuse to brush their teeth? Yelling will only make the situation worse. When a child sees an angry parent, they lose the ability to perceive an adult’s words.
Parents’ emotions completely rule the ball. So, exhale, count to three, and then calmly explain to the baby that this is not the way to behave.
Do not control the child, control the situation. Don’t expect perfect discipline and patience from a young child.
4. Listen and repeat
A little toddler has difficulty understanding complex sentences at their age. Two- and three-year-olds will do better, but they still don’t have enough attention to catch all of your comments.
For instance, at the store, you didn’t let your son open a package of cookies. The boy began to cry. Explain: “I know you are mad at me. I’m sorry, but you can’t do this in a store, otherwise, we’ll get scolded. We must pay first. Those are the rules. The child will still want cookies. But he calms down wonderfully, you’ll see.
5.Make short sentences
If a toddler hits you, say, “Don’t hit mom! It hurts. You can’t do it this way.” For a two-year-old, you can clarify, “Don’t jump on the couch! You don’t have to jump! It’s dangerous, you can fall! ” And the three-year-old will understand even more: “You need to brush your teeth. Either you do it yourself, or I’ll do it. Make a decision. The more time we spend now, the less time left to read a new book”.
Accept that disobedience is part of the development process
Praise the child for his good behavior, encourage them, give them small gifts. This is how you show that you respect their feelings.
Try to do everything to make yourself feel better and stronger. If you feel that you need support, reach out to your nearest and dearest.
Raising children requires a lot of strength and courage. You will definitely make it!
