Dear moms/dads of the world,

I’m not sure how often you find yourself in a situation where a friendly discussion turns into a heated conversation, if not a debate, about what method works for disciplining your child/children.

Many parents out there believe that by sparing the rod, you spoil your child. Thus end up in what I would like to call, teaching their child a lesson through the palm. In fact, many parents back in our day too used to abide by that rule. For something bad that you did, one whack would straighten you out no matter how small or big the act was.

Such is not the case anymore!

While an occasional dose of cattle-mentality may discipline your child, it is the time and age where you are able to communicate with your child in different ways. For instance, when my sister and I were growing up, our mother put her foot down and said, no to using palms but instead use reason to understand what we had done. She was sure that was the only way we would end up learning not make the same mistakes and she was right.  

Of course not all parents think alike, but in this day and age, I believe that the reasoning with your children has a better and longer impact than the use of palms. Take the effort to first understand what they did and why; then make them understand the pros and cons of their actions. Talking to them only helps in making them see sense of the situation/problem. It also proves to be is a step in gaining their trust. So they can come and tell anything at any time unlike when you raise your hand on them, there’s always the fear of getting whacked again which could lead to them hiding or lying about things.

From one parent to another, let us know what your thoughts are about how to discipline your child by leaving a comment below.

Until next time,

Love

Pod Parents.