Lynne Osborn, Extension Educator
University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension
Change the surroundings instead of the child's behavior. Adult/child difficulties sometimes happen because some part of the physical setting or surrounding is not right for young children, or because adults expect children to act older or more mature than they are.
Think about changes in surroundings you could make in the following situations.
Your pre-schooler seems to spill milk at every meal.
Your fifteen-month old still gets sticky hands while eating. And he likes to pull his sister's braids with those sticky hands.
Three-year-old Maria jumps from the couch to the chair and back again, over and over.
Your kids are always getting into your makeup.
This week when you find yourself in difficult situations with your children, make changes to your surroundings to solve the problems. Then call Dundy County University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension at 423-2021 or 800-485-0219 or e-mail losborn1@unl.edu and let us know how you dealt with those difficult situations by changing your surroundings.
Source: Parenting Your Child Effectively, NF02-531, by Marilyn Fox, extension educator, University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension.
