I had a mom come in the other day and ask me how is is possible that I could get our Toddler group who are very loud and full of energy, calmed so quickly with out raising my voice. I explained that in my 30 plus years of working with children I learned the secret. All it takes is a quiet voice to change the groups behavior.

When you need to get a child’s attention, just lower your voice to a quiet level and speak to them in a kind gentle voice. They will immediately stop and listen to hear what you are saying. You may have to repeat yourself a few times but, believe me you will get their attention. If you raise your voice to a level louder that the average voice, you might as well just whistle in the wind.

Children respond better to a quiet voice that is kind than to a loud angry voice.

If you have one child who is still loud and a bit over the edge. You need to get to their level,  look them in the face, make good eye contact and quietly tell them what you need them to do. Remember to praise the child with a “good job” or “your super” to reinforce the behavior modification.

Have you ever seen a child acting up at a store and hear the mother losing control and start yelling? How does the child respond? Does the child actually stop the undesired behavior? I bet the answer is no. I totally understand the stress of parenting. If the mom would take a deep breath and then use the technique described above, she very well may have stopped the behavior without losing her cool. Once you lose your cool you lose the battle.

Children respond better to calm positive direction that to stressful harsh direction. So don’t stress yourself out. Take a deep breath, count to three and remain calm.

Remember you catch more flies with honey than vinegar.

Til next time remember Stay Calm.

Miss Joy