| ParentsDirect Online School By Marilyn Padget |
Dear Marilyn: My 4 year old constantly says No to everything I say. I cannot believe he is being so defiant. What can I do. It is very NORMAL for a 4 year old to say No a lot of the time. It is not that he is being defiant, he is being assertive. Your son is beginning to form his own unique world where he is becoming independent and testing his own power. This is when you will see that he wants to do things on his own without your help. It is important that you realize being assertive is a good thing and I promise you your son is not trying to make you mad or be defiant. I would strongly suggest that you come to the Parents Workshop on February 8th Once you learn what is normal behavior and what the normal stages of development are for your 4 year old , it will eliminate a lot of stress from your life. Dear Marilyn: How can I get my 4 year old to sleep in his own bed? If your son is use to sleeping with you, chances are that he is not too happy if you put him in his own bed. It is important that you understand why this transition is so hard for him. When he sleeps with you he feels secure, safe and loved. If you understand this then you will understand that he has to feel the same way when he is in his own bed. Like weaning from a bottle, it will take some patience and some time on your part. Make sure he has things around him that he favors, a special blanket, stuffed animal, etc. A picture of you will also help so he can look at you. For the first few nights when you put him in his own bed, lay with him and soothe him until he falls asleep. If he wakes up during the night and climbs into bed with you that is okay, you want to turn this around gradually. If you do this night after night he will learn to stay in his own bed without fear and without you. Dear Marilyn: Is it true that brown eye children have more problems in school? To the best of my knowledge the color of a child’s eyes has no bearing whatsoever on his or her behavior. Email me MPadget@aol.com at ParentsDirect and I will help you solve it. This article and its contents has been written for ParentsDirect and are the sole property of Marilyn Padget, PosiTive Strokes Worldwide, Ô. |
