Disciplining Noncompliant Children
Here are some “tricks of the trade” in language-based discipline so that teachers and parents get better results when disciplining angry and/or noncompliant children. 1. Lower Your Voice When disciplining, reduce the tone of your voice and speak s-l-o-w-e-r. This helps you both in projecting self-confidence and in remaining calm. Louder and angrier statements, on the other hand, conceal the message beneath all the noise and harsh words that accompany them. 2. Stay in the Present Do not dwell on past behavior, or something that happened weeks earlier. Correct only behavior that is happening here and now . 3. Own Your Message Change “You-messages” to “I-messages.” For example, instead of saying, “ You are such a potty mouth!” say, “ I feel uneasy because I don’t like being cursed.” 4. Challenge the Child When you address misbehavior, keep it simple but keep it ...