ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, August 28, 1996 TAG: 9608280006
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: DEBRA WARNER ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
* With toddlers, avoid language that can be confusing. Express things in the positive. ``Don't kick the furniture'' sounds like ``Kick the furniture.'' Try instead: ``Keep your feet off the furniture.''
* Don't use sentences with more words than the child's age. For a 3-year-old kicking a dog, say, ``Stop kicking now!''
* If you say you're going to do something, do it. If you say, ``Pick up your toy or I'll take it away,'' be prepared to hide the toy for a week.
* Discuss potentially dicey situations ahead of time. On the way to the hardware store, go over the ideas that, ``I want you to stay with me and not pick things up.''
* During tantrums, get down on the child's level. Sit side by side. Don't tease or make jokes at the child's expense. Don't walk away; that tells the child she isn't important and that the parent won't be there to help with the big upsets in life. Rub a toddler's back, starting at the base. Grasping her hands and rubbing with your thumbs can be soothing.
* Parents should select a firm bedtime and stick to it. Caretakers should take turns preparing the child for bed so bedtime is a constant. Toddlers and preschoolers need at least 10 hours a night.
* Numerous parenting books address discipline issues. Among them: ``Parent Power!'' (1994) by John Rosemond; ``Your Baby & Child'' (1989) by Penelope Leach; ``The New Dare to Discipline'' (1992) by James Dobson; and ``Child Behavior'' (1992) by Louise Bates, Frances L. Ilg, Sidney M. Baker and the Gesell Institute of Human Development.
LENGTH: Short : 37 linesby CNB