Time-Out: A Better Way To Discipline Your Child
Understanding Time-out
Timeout is a non violent and a more productive ways of disciplining a child. You can punish your child without having to shout at him or without having to raise your hand at him. In the plainest of words, Time-out involves holding back your child from doing something interesting for a very short duration, immediately after you see any misbehavior or misconduct.
The very moment that you find your child is doing something wrong, you will have to remove him from whatever he/she is doing and make him sit down silently and do nothing for some time.
The ideal place for Time-out
You don’t really have to create one specific corner which will be used as a timeout area. You can choose any place from where it is convenient for you to keep a watch on him, and where the child cannot indulge in any other form of recreation. So whatever location choose, it has to be away from the TV, his toys and all other such objects with which he would love to fiddle.
The rules to follow
To decide on how much time your child must stay in the timeout, the simplest rule is to let the Time-out duration (in minutes) be equal to the number of birthdays that your child has celebrated. With younger kids keeping them in the timeout zone for even two minutes may be a problem in the beginning. But whatever happens you need to stay calm, because the more silent you go the more upset the child feels. Your silence will have a much stronger and a more long lasting disciplining effect on your child.
Once you’ve put the child in the Time-out area, you should begin counting the time only when the child becomes completely calm and quiet. If the child is shouting, crying or throwing tantrums, then you need to wait till he calms down and then from there you need to begin counting the time. It is important to make the child realize that no amount of agitation and anger, on his part, can cut out on his Time-out duration.
The ending note
Time-out is certainly a much better option to discipline your child, without really causing any damage to either him or raising your own blood pressure.
