Disciplining children…It’s a polarising topic for sure – how to do it, when to do it – with every parent having their own philosophy and approach when it comes to teaching their children responsible behaviour and self-control. However, what happens when the misbehaving children in question are not your own?
Kelly Tay, founder of Juicy Parenting, a parenting coach and mother of two, says a good first step is to examine just what discipline entails.
“[The word] ‘discipline’ comes from Latin’s ‘disciplina’, which means instruction or knowledge – closer to the idea of a disciple in the midst of formation,” Tay explains. “To me, ‘discipline’ means to teach a child something, which often means teaching skills to help them make a better choice the next time.”
She adds, “This is very different from the punitive sense of the word we’ve come to use today, where ‘discipline’ means to manipulate a child into submission, either by fear or force (or sometimes, both).”
With that in mind we outline three common scenarios parents are likely to encounter that might involve other people’s children and find out how different parents approach the situation – and what the experts advise.