The place that I observed a parent and child was at a gas station. The child was about 7 years old and seem to be very used to getting his way. The child wanted some candy and kept going over to the rack and picking it up. The parent took the candy away and told the child that they could not have it because they was going home to have dinner. The child start to cry and stomp his feet. Everyone started looking at them and you could tell that the parent was becoming embarrassed, she finally purchased the candy and took the child back to the car. This was not very good at all because the parent should have made a point of letting the child know that just because he cry and stomp his feet that he cannot get everything that he wants. According this article, "Do not reward your child's tantrum by giving in. This will only prove to your little one that the tantrum was effective. Instead, verbally praise a child for regaining control. Also, kids may be especially vulnerable after a tantrum when they know they've been less than adorable. Now (when your child is calm) is the time for a hug and reassurance that your child is loved, no matter what."(Heath, 2010). "Effective parent-child communication is the basis of positive parent-child interactions and high self-esteem in children. Furthermore, effective communication between parents and children prevents problematic behavior and helps children understand how to interact effectively with others.(kidshealth, 2014). If this parent learn how to communicate effectively this child will go up to be a very productive adult.
References
Effective Communication with Children | Education.com retrieved on September 20, 2014 from
http://www.education.com/reference/article/effective-parent-child-communication/
Temper Tantrums - KidsHealth retrieved on September 20, 2014 from
kidshealth.org/parent/emotions/behavior/tantrums.html
Joanne I agree with you, every parent needs to communicate effectively to their children for them to become successful adults. It is also our responsible as educators to let parents know the importance of effective communication with their children. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHi Joanne,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your observation. I think that we have all witnessed a similar incident at one time or another. It is very frustrating to me, and other early childhood professionals I'm sure, when you see a parent become embarrassed and give in to their child. We all know that that is a cycle that will become harder and harder to break the more it happens. The parent needed to stand their ground after explaining why he could not have the candy.
I can't even begin to remember the total amount of times I've seen this happen. The problem is that we can't even think of interjecting our wisdom and helping the Mom or Dad out. Thanks for sharing this and reminding me of the tantrums I pulled. Aloha
ReplyDelete