Effective discipline for 8-year-olds

When a child is 8 years old, it is a time when many boys and girls begin to change. They begin to show you better critical thinking skills, solve problems effectively, and have much better attention spans. At this age, 8-year-olds begin to want more independence, although from time to time they still need your help because they have forgotten how to use them. Children will need to improve or adjust their social, emotional, and behavioral skills.

8 YEAR OLD BOYS AND GIRLS

There will be days when your child seems more mature and other times he shows you his immature face … this is normal at this age. Although they do not want to be ‘little children’, they cannot be ‘big children’ even because of their biological immaturity. This can be an internal struggle for them as they want to learn new skills.

Physical skills at these ages also improve a lot and they can excel in sports, music, art, or other interests. It is the ideal time for children to explore their interests. At home, they will try to test the limits over and over again, they may be grumpy or have tantrums when they don’t get what they want. You will want to increase your privacy so this is a good time for you to keep a journal. Even if you want privacy, there will be some things like the use of technologies or social networks that will require your control.

PROBLEMS AT SCHOOL

At age 8, children begin taking tests with higher expectations and may have some difficulty keeping up with homework. Sometimes behavior problems can stem from frustration with academic tasks. There are children who would rather be the ‘class clown’ than the ‘class fool’.

If behavioral problems appear due to learning problems, they must be addressed with consequences but addressing the problem that originates it. Children need to organize their homework, have good control of the tasks to be done each day with the use of an agenda, and if they do not understand the concepts and you cannot help them, then it will be a good idea to hire the services of a private teacher.

Sometimes these behavioral problems when they are very continuous over time can generate concern in the parents and the request of a child psychologist to know if there is any type of disorder. This is necessary to do so that if there is a disorder, it can be addressed as soon as possible.

HELP YOUR CHILD BUILD THEIR CONFIDENCE

8-year-olds may feel overconfident and, at other times, doubt their own abilities. They can compare themselves to their peers and think that ‘others are better than me’. But the important thing in these cases is to teach children that with practice and effort, anyone can improve their skills.

You will have to encourage your child to continue working hard, even when frustrated … always point out the best ones when you see them saying things like: ‘Do you remember how a few days ago you didn’t know how to ride a bike and now you know how to do it much better? ‘.

KEEP YOUR AUTHORITY

Your children need to feel how you have authority, but it must be a good authority, where there are correct results in children’s behavior, without fear. For this you will have to establish clear expectations and rules so that children know what you expect of them and what the appropriate behaviors are like.

To gain authority in your children you will have to validate their feelings, show empathy, establish clear rules and consequences when they break them. All of these efforts will help you become a parent of good authority, something that is key to helping your child become a responsible adult.

POSITIVE ATTENTION

Children to be calm and safe depend on the attitude that adults have towards them all the time. If you want your 8-year-old to be calm and secure, he will need a lot of positive attention from you. Take a few minutes each day to give your child your undivided attention.

No matter how bad he was that day, play a game, talk about how the day was, or just read him a story before he goes to sleep or sing him a song. Giving your child this positive attention will reduce the quest for attention and he will behave better all the time.

PRAISE THE EFFORT

When your child does good things, give him specific praise. Instead of praising the result of something, praise the effort for having tried or that thanks to that effort it has obtained good results.

Instead of telling him how smart he is when he gets good grades on a test, you’d better tell him that thanks to his efforts he has been able to improve his grade, because trying always pays off. Praise for effort will build good character and motivate you to do better every time.

REWARD SYSTEM

Sometimes 8-year-olds need incentives to motivate themselves to solve problem behaviors or improve bad behaviors. Reward systems can be wonderful motivators for 8-year-olds. Identify behaviors that you want your children to improve and allow your children to choose the privileges if they meet the objectives.

Examples of privileges should be: more playing time on the tablet, more playing time in the park, being able to go to sleep 15 later, playing a special game as a family, going out for ice cream … etc. In no case should they be rewards that cost money or exaggerated materials.

SCHEDULE TO DO HOMEWORK

If you see that your 8-year-old son gets involved in what his responsibilities are in housework and academics, then you will have to remind him through a schedule what he should do each day and when is the period of time that he has per day to do it. They can practice their desired independence with a schedule that allows them to remind themselves what to do and when.

You may begin to have an interest in money . If you want a small allowance, you will have to do chores outside of your chores like mowing the lawn or taking out the trash when it doesn’t belong (for a whole week for example). This way you can start teaching your child how to save or how to spend money wisely.

A behavior contract, grandmother’s law for discipline, waiting time or the withdrawal of privileges are good educational forms that you can also use at this age because they are effective.