How to Take Care of Naughty Kids

Life

Part 4 Reinforcing Good Behavior

1.Ask the child to help come up with rewards for their good behavior. You can sit down with them, and write down several different things they’d like to do, meals they’d like to eat, and places they’d like to visit. Have them tell you which things they really, really would like, and rank them from highest priority to lowest priority.
When your child does something really great, you can reward them with their top reward. For example, if their teacher reports that they have behaved very well all month at school, you could take them to the zoo, if that was the thing they most wanted. You can use the other rewards to reward them for other good behavior, such as making up the bed each day for a week without being asked.

2.Praise them verbally. If you notice your child behaving particularly well, tell them so. Thank them for behaving so nicely, and give them a hug. Reward them with something from the list, too.

If you never reward them for their good behavior unless they remind you of your agreements, it may demonstrate to them that you aren’t really paying any attention.

3.Spend time with them. Most children really enjoy doing things with parents and caregivers. If your child is behaving well, show them that you appreciate it by doing things together with them. Allow them to take more responsibility with tasks. This will show them that you notice their good behavior, and are rewarding it.
For example, if your child is behaving very well, ask them to come plant some flowers in the garden with you. Then, let them take charge (within reason). Let them choose where to plant the flowers, let them place the seeds into the hole, and cover it up.

Part 5 Taking Care of Children That Are Not Your Own

1.Discuss discipline with the parents. It is important that you discuss how the child should be disciplined if the rules are broken with the parents of the child. Ask them how they discipline the child, and what their expectations are when it comes to you taking care of the child and applying discipline if the rules are not followed.

It is important to discuss this with the parents so that there are not any misunderstandings. If you don’t discuss this, you may use different discipline techniques than the parents. Not only will this cause confusion and stress for the child, but it may also cause tension in your relationship with the parents.

2.Set rules. In all likelihood, the rules you use with the child will be the same as the ones the parents use. However, you might ask the parents to include one or two new rules to the list that relate specifically to how the child is expected to behave when you are the caretaker.

For example, you might include a rule that explicitly states that when you are taking care of the child, you are in charge, and the child is expected to do as you say.
It is probably also a good idea to sit down with the child (if they are old enough to understand), with the parents, in order to go over all of the rules (including any new rules). This will help the child understand that the rules apply in your presence, and will let them know that you are well aware of the rules, too.

3.Be consistent. This is perhaps the most important thing to remember. Sometimes it will be easier to just let the child do what they want. However, it is important that you also follow all the rules, and apply consequences for the rule if it is broken.
This is important because if the child knows you don’t follow the rules rigidly, then they are more likely to misbehave in your presence. Additionally, it is also likely that they will begin to question the authority of their parents.

...[ Continue to next page ]