Gone are the days of “just wait until your father get’s home!” Today, no parent wants to be seen as the only disciplinarian in the home. At the same time, it can be difficult to establish equal discipline between each parent. Fortunately, there are some things that you can keep in mind that will help to get you toward the goal of equal discipline.

One of the most important things that parents can do to establish equal discipline with their children is to make sure that their own communication lines are open. By talking regularly and openly about how they each feel about the discipline of their children, parents can be sure that they are on the same page, and that they present a united front. Talking about discipline methods, as well as household rules, and coming to a general agreement about these things will help parents to approach discipline equally.

In addition to agreeing together about rules and punishments, parents should share in the process of communicating those rules to their children. If, for example, there will be a new baby or a new pet in the house, both parents should sit down with their older child or children and discuss what appropriate behaviors are and what behaviors are not going to be appropriate.

Another useful technique is to take turns with discipline. While it isn’t necessarily important for parents to log disciplinarian events and make sure that they are each handling half of them, it is useful to try to switch off from time to time. If a mom, for example, stays home with her children, she will provide most of the discipline during the day. In the evenings, then, the dad should try to provide the majority of the discipline. On the weekends, parents should make a conscious effort to go back and forth between them.

Just as it is important to share equally in discipline, parents should make an effort to equally share in praise. When a child is behaving, both parents should try to acknowledge the good behavior. Often, positively reinforcing these good behaviors is more effective discipline than doling out punishments for bad behavior.

Posted in Baby and Toddler

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