Strategies for Guiding Children's Behavior

This assignment delves into effective strategies for guiding children's behavior. It presents four scenarios involving common behavioral challenges faced by parents: fighting, interrupting, snatching toys, and tampering with electronics. For each scenario, the assignment outlines a specific strategy and provides a detailed explanation of its rationale. The strategies emphasize positive reinforcement, clear boundaries, and age-appropriate discipline techniques.

Running Head: GUIDING CHILDREN’S BEHAVIOUR
Guiding Children’s Behaviour
Name of Student
Name of University
Author Note

1GUIDING CHILDREN’S BEHAVIOUR
RESPONSES TO DIFFICULT BEHAVIOUR
1) Eight-year-old twins, Kieran and Daniel, have been fighting with fisticuffs, on and off
all afternoon.
Strategy: Making uses of consequences- no playtime and TV for both Kieran and Daniel for
that evening.
Reason for such a strategy
In such a situation, corporal punishment or a verbal thrashing might have a converse
effect o the children. Although fighting is highly disagreeable, eight-year-old boys will fight
now and then and this probably cannot be stopped entirely1. What can be done is to prevent
them from fighting by using negative consequences. Not being able to go to play while their
friends are at it will make the children realise their fault, and that brothers and friends are for
playing with and sharing thoughts, not for fighting. Television has a telling influence on
children, to an addictive extent2. Debarring them from watching their favourite show will
make them teach them that, if they fight again, they will miss more precious things like TV
and games.
1 Cowie, Helen. "Relationships of children involved in bullylvictim problems at school." Making sense of social
development 3 (2014): 120.
2 Huesmann, L. Rowell, and Leonard D. Eron, eds. Television and the aggressive child: A cross-national
comparison. Routledge, 2013.

2GUIDING CHILDREN’S BEHAVIOUR
2) Five-year-old Alexandra continually interrupts her mother’s conversation with the
neighbour by butting in, pulling Mum’s skirt and running between the women.
Strategy: Give Alexandra a frosty frown and tell her to go and play in her room.
Reason for such a strategy
Five years is mature enough to realise when elders are doing something important and
when particularly not to disturb them. Physical gestures or facial expressions like an angry
look or a frown will signal her that whatever she is doing is causing disturbance, and needs
t:o be stopped3. Thrashing her in front of her neighbour will embarrass both Alexandra and
the neighbour.
3) Eighteen-month old Toby snatches a toy from a younger baby
Strategy: Return the toy and distract Toby with a mobile video-game for the time being
Reason for such a strategy
Toby is too young to realise what he did wrong and probably took the toy just by
instinct and curiosity. Neither a sermon nor a thrashing would help in this circumstance,
demoralising the child4. Once the child has been distracted and is no longer trying to snatch
the toy, it should be explained to him that he must not take what belongs to others without
asking politely. This will help inculcate patience and politeness in the child.
4) Two-year-old Maddison is trying to push the buttons on the DVD-player
Strategy: Get Maddison off the DVD-player; make it clear him that the DVD-player is not a
toy and that she is not to touch it.
3 Cline, Foster, and Jim Fay. Parenting with love and logic: Teaching children responsibility. Tyndale House,
2014.
4 Harding, Lorraine Fox. Perspectives in child care policy. Routledge, 2014.

3GUIDING CHILDREN’S BEHAVIOUR
Reason for such a strategy
In such a situation, clear boundaries should be set for the child. Children are naturally
curious and this curiosity manifests itself mostly on toys and electronic gadgets. In this case,
a clear boundary should be set for Maddison as to what she can play with and what not5. At
two-years old, other forms of parenting like scolding or beating will definitely have a
negative effect on Maddison, who will probably wish to do such things again in the future.
She needs to be explained that DVD players are expensive objects and are not to be tampered
with.
5 Cline, Foster, and Jim Fay. Parenting with love and logic: Teaching children responsibility. Tyndale House,
2014.

4GUIDING CHILDREN’S BEHAVIOUR
References:
Cline, Foster, and Jim Fay. Parenting with love and logic: Teaching children responsibility.
Tyndale House, 2014.
Cline, Foster, and Jim Fay. Parenting with love and logic: Teaching children responsibility.
Tyndale House, 2014.
Cowie, Helen. "Relationships of children involved in bullylvictim problems at
school." Making sense of social development 3 (2014): 120.
Harding, Lorraine Fox. Perspectives in child care policy. Routledge, 2014.
Huesmann, L. Rowell, and Leonard D. Eron, eds. Television and the aggressive child: A
cross-national comparison. Routledge, 2013.