Tips on Helping Your Child Learn Self-Control

Self-control is one of the most important skills required for success now and later in life.

By learning self-control kids can make appropriate decisions and respond to stressful situations in ways that can yield positive outcomes.

For example, if you say that you’re not serving ice cream until after dinner, your child may cry, plead, or even scream in the hopes that you will give in. But with self-control, your child can understand that a temper tantrum means you’ll take away the ice cream for good and that it’s wiser to wait patiently.

Here are a few suggestions for different age brackets on helping them learn to control their behavior:

Up to age 2

Infants and toddlers get frustrated by the large gap between the things they want to do and what they’re able to do. They often respond with temper tantrums. Try to prevent outbursts by distracting your little one with toys or other activities.

For kids reaching the 2-year-old mark, try a brief timeout in a designated area to show the consequences for outbursts and teach that it’s better to take some time alone instead of throwing a tantrum.

Age 3 to 5

You can continue to use timeouts, but rather than setting a specific time limit, end timeouts once your child has calmed down. This helps kids improve their sense of self-control. Also, praise your child for not losing control in frustrating or difficult situations.

Age 6 to 9

As kids enter school, they’re better able to understand the idea of consequences and that they can choose good or bad behavior. It may help your child to imagine a stop sign that must be obeyed and think about a situation before responding. Encourage your child to walk away from a frustrating situation for a few minutes to cool off instead of having an outburst. Praise kids when they do walk away and cool off so they’re more likely to use those skills again.

Age 10 to 12

Older kids usually understand their feelings better. Encourage them to think about what’s causing them to lose control and then analyze it. Explain that sometimes situations that are upsetting at first don’t end up being so awful. Urge kids to take time to think before responding to a situation. Compliment them as they use their self-control skills.

Age 13 to 17

By now kids should be able to control most of their actions, but remind teens to think about long-term consequences. Urge them to pause to evaluate upsetting situations before responding and talk through problems rather than losing control, slamming doors, or yelling. If necessary, discipline your teen by taking away certain privileges to reinforce the message that self-control is an important skill. Allow him or her to earn the privileges back by demonstrating self-control.

When kids are out of control

As difficult as it may be, resist the urge to yell when you’re disciplining your kids. Instead, be firm and matter of fact. During a child’s meltdown, stay calm and explain that yelling, throwing a tantrum, and slamming doors are unacceptable behaviors that have consequences and say what those consequences are.

Your actions will show that tantrums won’t get kids the upper hand. For example, if your child gets upset in the grocery store after you’ve explained why you won’t buy candy, don’t give in, This demonstrates that the tantrum was both unacceptable and ineffective.

Also, consider speaking to your child’s teachers about classroom settings and appropriate behavior expectations. Ask if problem-solving is taught or demonstrated in school.

Then, model good self-control yourself. If you’re in an irritating situation in front of your kids, tell them why you’re frustrated and then discuss potential solutions to the problem. For example, if you’ve misplaced your keys, instead of getting upset, tell your kids the keys are missing and then search for them together. If they don’t turn up, take the next constructive step (like retracing your steps when you last had the keys in-hand). Show that good emotional control and problem solving are the ways to deal with a difficult situation.

If you continue to have difficulties, ask your doctor if family counseling sessions might help.

Source: Kidshealth