Is Your Discipline Damaging the Spirit of the Child?

If your parenting methods include abuse of any kind; physical, sexual, emotional or verbal, please get help to stop as soon as possible. Adults are supposed to safeguard and protect the young among us. You may be repeating patterns learned in your family of origin or not know any other methods of parenting.

I have included a number of different approaches to discipline that won't damage the spirit of your precious children, but none will work if you haven't acknowledged that what you were doing in the past was harmful and that your family deserved a more nurturing environment. I am not a psychologist or a counselor, but I know there are good ones out there who can assist you in shifting your paradigm of discipline to a more loving and respectful relationship. You owe it to your children and yourself to break the bonds and cycle of abuse and get help. Change is possible; I see it every day in families I work with. You are a good, kind and loving person or you wouldn't be reading this book and attending these classes, so I encourage you to take the steps that will change the lives of your children and their children.

You can do it. I believe in you.

A list of talking points to help you discipline without damage is listed below.

? The meaning of the word discipline ? Is your love unconditional ? Be both firm and kind in discipline ? Adults also need time out ? Teach them that mistakes are never final ? We all need boundaries ? Consistent does not mean rigid ? Discipline but never punish ? Catch them doing things right ? Teach without anger, shame or blame ? There is no such thing as a "good" or "bad" child ? Issue a warning, but mean it ? Spanking and screaming are not effective teachers ? Eliminate "Who's at Fault?" ? Be aware of your body and facial language ? Treat each child as an individual ? Be careful of abusive adjectives, they really hurt ? Recognize effort and improvement ? Don't punish them for telling the truth ? Deal with problems in private, praise in public ? Distinguish between minor mishaps and major problems ? Teach them to forgive and ask for forgiveness ? Be curious not furious-Ask questions

This handout has been prepared for you by Judy H. Wright, Parent Educator. It is part of a new book, Raise a Confident Child which will be coming out soon. For Free reports and to subscribe to the "Artichoke-finding the heart of the story in the journey of life" please join us at www.ArtichokePress.com

Judy H. Wright is a parent educator and life coach. Her passion and joy is in working with Head Start staff and Child Care providers to create a climate where every child succeeds and blossoms. The website http://www.ArtichokePress.com contains many free articles and reports as well as books, workshops and tele-classes for parents and educators.

---

10 Secrets To Know You?re A Good Working Parent To Your Kids!

How are parents to know they are doing the right thing for their children when they are working parents? Many parents feel guilty for the amount of time they are spending at work... Read More

How Public Schools Lie to Parents and Betray Our Children

Under the "No Child Left Behind Act," public schools whose students consistently fail standardized tests can now be shut down. To protect their jobs, teachers and principals are now under intense pressure to... Read More

Fizzy Sherbet ? A Sweet Science Lesson for Your Kids!

Fizzy sherbet in a paper bag with a strawberry lollipop was probably my favorite treat as a child, but I never knew what was in the sherbet and why it sparkled and tingled... Read More

Choosing Wooden Toys For Children

Wooden toys are one of the best alternatives for the huge number of toys made of plastic and other synthetic materials that you can find in all toy stores.In addition, most ... Read More

25 Things That Matter When Relating To Our Children (Leaving A Legacy Of Love To Those We Love)

In my opinion, these things matter...1. Enjoying childlike delights before the child no longer delights in being one.2. Paying attention long enough to understand -- yet caring enough to make a necessary correction... Read More

Preparing Your Child for the Three Rs

There is little doubt that reading, 'riting and 'rithmetic are crucial elements in the education of any child. A child's ability to later cope in the adult world, to have a career, to... Read More

Your Job as a Role Model

A certain educator was once asked at what point should a parent begin to prepare for child raising."How old are you?" the educator inquired."Twenty-three.""You should begin twenty-three years ago."What is the message? The... Read More

Elephants and Teenagers

Something eerily familiar happened in KwaZulu-Natal's Hluhluwe-Umfolozi Park in Africa recently.The adult elephants were taken away and the orphaned youngsters were left to fend for themselves.The youngsters started the path to sexual maturity.... Read More

Effective Troubled Teen Programs

Not all parents subscribe to the notion of "tough love," which is used so extensively in many troubled teen programs. Some parents want their children close by and want to avoid placing their... Read More

Finding Out Your Child Has a Disability: Its Not the end of the World

Finding out that a child has been born with a disability, or that a previously healthy child has suffered an injury or disease that causes a disability can be the most traumatic moment... Read More

Building Self Confidence

Several similar terms describe the central attribute of a character that decides on the strength of personality and the degree of inner freedom:- "self assurance" describes mostly the behaviour. Counterparts are insecure behaviour... Read More

ADHD: A Dialogue With a Non-Believer, part three

Dear Sir, It was with some interest that I read the article What You Should Know About Attention Deficit Disorder by Edward W. after having it handed to me by a member of... Read More

How To Be Your Childs Sex Educator

The debate in many towns continues throughout this country about who should hold the responsibility of educating young people about sex and sexuality. On one side of the spectrum there are those who... Read More

Calming Tips for Hyperactive Children

Parents of hyperactive children know the "Would you please just settle down?!" phrase well, and likely use it on a regular basis.There are a number of tips to help parents settle their hyperactive... Read More

Nights by a Pinocchio Lamp

Sitting by her Pinocchio lamp, she smiled at me as her tiny shadow puppet danced on the bedroom wall. "A bunny!" she giggled with all the jubilance of a four-year old. Her blue... Read More

Summer Survival

Summer Survival The summer season is here and along with it comes summer vacation for the school-aged kids. Moms are now responsible for coming up with... Read More

Muscle Pain And Children Do Not Mix

I am in pain. I've been in pain all day. Last night, I was in "searing pain", which is pain multiplied by pain, divided by relief, then multiplied by pain to the tenth... Read More

Your Kids Career - Whose Choice?

A strange thing happened to me today. Or more precisely, a strange thought occurred. You see, my eldest son helped me install a new kitchen. He was the expert handyman. Me? Well, I... Read More

Cyber Parenting 101

Many parental units are not "techies" and openly admit they are not. They seem to use that as an excuse to not be informed and "trust" their children to do what is right... Read More

Parenting Your Teenager: Teens and Violence

I have a bit of a different response than most therapists to the often asked question:"How can all this teen violence be happening?"My questions are:"How could this not be happening"and"Why doesn't it happen... Read More

Hearing Our Seriously Distressed Adolescents

The distressed adolescent often has feelings of abandonment, emotional detachment, withdrawal, and isolation. These children begin to develop an intense anger directed towards an adult society that they feel has hurt them and... Read More

Parenting Your Teenager: 3 More Dangerous Myths

MYTH: If you have not parented as well as you would have liked up until now, it's too late to try anything different.REALITY: This is one of those seductive little lies that sounds... Read More

Am I Really A Stroller-Monger?

I was reading "A Modern Infant Armada", a humor column in Maclean's Magazine written by a fellow humor columnist. Writing about it now is a bit like a painter painting another painter or... Read More

How To Be A Bad Mother

As I sit here and reflect on the past two days and really the past two months, I am flooded with memories of the past and present. All of these thoughts run through... Read More

The Metamorphosis of The Brain: Raising Your child to be a Brainiac

The human brain never actually stops developing. Beginning formation in early prenatal life (just 3 weeks after conception), the brain's development is a lifelong endevour, endlessly under construction, constantly reshaping and redefining itself... Read More

Registering a Birth in Scotland

Who Can Register A Birth? The child's mother or father should register the birth within 21 days. However, a father who is not married to the child's mother can only register... Read More

Humans and Their Innate Need for Drug Stimulation

We know that ancient cultures and Indians and the like across the globe used such mind-altering drugs to alter their states. Still today in the world we have whole cultures enslaved to drugs... Read More

From Birth to Teen, Spirituality in Children

Until about the age of six, children do not generally have the aptitude to think in abstract terms. But they do have an imagination, and they do fantasize... it is just that they... Read More

PG Rating Isnt What It Used To Be

If there are any parents reading this who are thinking of taking their under-10 year olds to see the PG rated Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, please read the following from a ... Read More