FAMILY ISSUES (1F-2)

Communication Skills

NameDate


Knowing how to talk to a child is very important. Many parents just yell at kids. They come into the house and see that the child has left his toys all over the living room, though he/she has been told to put them away, they start yelling.

"How many times have I told you to put your toys away, don't you listen to me!! I could talk to you until I'm blue in the face, and you still don't do as you're told. Your so lazy! If you don't put your toys away, I'm going to take them away from you and give them to the neighbors. Can't you ever listen? Look at me when I'm talking to you or I'Il smack you one."

When you act like that you arejust setting you and your child up for a bad day. Your yelling and threats confuse the child and make it harder for him to respond Your telling him that he's a bad kid who doesn't do what he is told. Your his father and he's going to believe you. A little kid isn't going to understand you if you talk so much, little kids have just learned the language. If you talk too fast or tell them too many things at once, you lose them.

In talking to kids, keep it simple, you might say for example, "I don't like it when you leave your toys out, pick them up please."

Clear, simple messages work much better, speak slowly and distinctly. Don't use words the child doesn't know. Look the child in the eye to make sure that he's listening.

An important quality of a good father is patience. It sometimes takes quite awhile to get through to a child.

Let's take the example of the toys lying around all over the living room; what if you tell your child to pick them up and he doesn't? What should you do?




It's a good rule to give a child at least three chances to what he/she was told before you use discipline. Do you think that you have that much patience?