Consistency
Consistency is the key while raising your child. Do not say "no"
for something and then fail to follow up if your child ignores
your "no". If you fail to support your word with action your
child will learn that your "no" doesn't always mean much.
For example, if your child is pressing a dishwasher's button
that could start a false washing cycle over again, and you are
trying to convince him that this is a wrong thing to do for the
past ten minutes then you are on a wrong track. After pressing
the button for the first time and having heard your "no" he
should've stop ped his behavior shortly. If he still continues,
then you should take your child by his hand firmly, look at him
in his eyes and say a firm NO and take him away from the machine
and distract with some other activity.
Young (1-3yrs) children's attention span and memory are short
thus distraction and firmness of your word are the best ways to
deal with certain situations. Start early. As soon as your child
becomes a curious explorer there are certain zones that should
be kept from the child's access.
However usually there are spots in the house which are
accessible to children but you prefer them not to be touched
(for example audio system). Lets say your child kept trying to
explore your audio system. No matter how lazy you are at that
moment, get up from that sofa and tell him that this is a "no"
zone. If your baby is again there after a while repeat the same
thing again, after a few times your child will likely stay away
from your audio system or touch it very carefully and will not
make any damage.
A word of caution: like everything in this life, discipline in
access can result in a person with low self confidence later in
life. Do not overdo it! You child learns only through
exploration and trial and error methods. Don't be too
restrictive. Allow things as long as they are within the safe
and reasonable range of exploration.
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