How to Stop “Sassy” Behavior in Your Child
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Almost all of us parents know that parenting is rewarding. There are few things- if any- more amazing than watching your child growing up. Yet, we parents know that parenting can be tough. Very tough. When kids are young and learning how to control emotions, speak with others, and socialize, a lot of times behavior can quickly turn into what a lot of parents call “sassy behavior.” Is it just me, or is it tough some days to not get to their level sometimes and sass right back? It can be so challenging to know where to start in how to improve your child’s behavior. However, it is crucial to start these steps when your child is as young as possible.
The best time to stop this behavior in your kids is when they are young because when they get into their teens, it will easily become an uphill battle because instead of it simply being “sassy behavior” in children, it is actually elements that are in the process to become lifelong habits.
How to Improve Your Child’s Behavior
In this article, we offer you tips on how you can stop this behavior as well as the steps you need in how to improve your child’s behavior. These will be tips and tricks that can help your child not only now but in the future as well. Habits start early, but they are also easier to break earlier.
Recognize the behavior early and nip it in the bud
The earlier you recognize this behavior and fight it head-on, the higher are your chances of handling the situation aptly. A lot of behavior may start with triggers. It may be nothing more than certain triggers bringing them to certain actions. But then, after a while, the child knows exactly how to test the parents and hit the right buttons. If their behavior becomes difficult and you let it go, they will know that the behavior is okay to keep up. Basically, this starts as mostly a nature issue and turns into a nurture issue.
The start of this is not only to recognize the behavior but also help your child recognize the behavior. Once you recognize it and let your child know that recognize it, it would be good to let them know that such behavior would not be tolerated in your household. Establishing household rules creates definitive structures for your child.
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Know what triggers your child’s behavior
Kids just don’t wake up one day and decide to have a bad attitude or decide to test you. I know it may seem like it some days, but that is never what your child has planned for the day when they wake up. There are usually triggers or stressors that lead them to this behavior. Sometimes, these triggers are extremely hard to see. When the triggers are hard to see, it makes it seem like these behaviors come out of nowhere. As a parent, it becomes our duty to take the time to really try to identify all the factors that happen before each time there is bad behavior.
Sometimes, your child will consistently have the same type of meltdown. Spend a few weeks and jot down what happens in the day before that. Sometimes, it could be the smallest of things that create the meltdowns.
Tackle these triggers before they push the kid into misbehaving
Once you can identify what the triggers are, it is time to tackle them. This is the hardest part, but it will get easier as it goes.
However, do not try to tackle them all at once. This can lead to a lot of confusion for a child. Once you have recognized the triggers, you may realize all the times your child had the same “sassy behavior” they were actually different types of bad behavior from different triggers, so it is best to tackle one at a time.
Correct behavior
Set clear expectations on how to improve your child’s behavior. As well, set clear consequences for any behavior that needs to be improved.
You will need to be very firm on this. It is hard in the beginning, but it gets the tiniest bit easier every time. Disciplining a child, identifying and correcting the behavior, is an important part of their growth and development. When they exhibiting signs of negative behavior, let them know that they will face certain consequences for the behavior. Do not be harsh about it, because it could make the defiance arise. Instead, be firm and make sure that the consequences are something they would really not want to face.
It would be good to discipline them right away when the behavior has occurred. This way, they will be able to understand that they have been punished for acting in a specific way. If you take too long, they might forget and think you are punishing them unnecessarily.
Model the virtue of good behavior in the homestead
The key in how to improve your child’s behavior comes from every member of the household modeling that same behavior. Kids are very visual and they learn better through observation. If the other members of the family are impolite, disrespectful and rude, do not expect the child to deviate from this. This can even include some remarks that a child may find rude because they are too young to understand the context around it, such as sarcasm.
If they grow in a homestead where everyone knows that it is not okay to be rude to others, they will grow up acting similar. This is especially important at a young age because as they grow older, the habits will be ingrained into them.
Comment below, what do you do to improve your child’s behavior? What are some of the struggles that you have?
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