Ways To Communicate So the Young Ones Will Pay Attention!
A significant part of discipline is learning how to talk with children. The way you talk to your child shows him how to communicate with others. Here are some talking suggestions I’ve learned with my children:
1. Connect before you direct
Before giving your kids instructions, bend down to your kid’s eye level and engage your kids in eye-to-eye contact to get his attention. Teach them how to focus: “Jimmy, I need your eyes.” “Jane, I need your ears.” Give exactly the same body language when listening to the child. Be sure not to make your eye contact so intense that your kid perceives it as controlling rather than connecting. You don’t want to scare them. Fear is NOT the answer (I tried that at first!)
2. Address the child
Open your request using the child’s name, “Xavier, will you please…” ( I have to use this because they will ignore me assuming I’m talking to the other child)
3. Stay brief (especially with young ones)
I try to make use of the one-sentence rule: Put the main instruction in the beginning sentence. The more time you ramble, the more likely your child will become parent-deaf. Excessive talking is an extremely typical mistake when dialoging about an issue. It increases the childs feeling that you’re not quite sure what it is you want to say. If they are able to keep you talking they will get you sidetracked.
4. Keep simple
Use short sentences with one-syllable words. LISTEN to how kids talk with each other and take note. Whenever your child shows that glazed, “I’m not paying attention” look, you are no longer being understood or even listened to. 
5. Ask your child to repeat instructions or your request back to you
If he or she can’t, it’s too long or too difficult.
As my kids get older, I realize how important it is to have open communication and that they learn respect for me. Stayed tuned mommies because I will be sharing more ways that you can communicate with your kids. We need to bridge this gap so that we can teach our kids better ways to make better decisions in life.
19. February 2010 at 12:42 pm
All very basic, but I think we so often forget much of this. Thanks for the reminder.
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21. February 2010 at 10:57 am
I stumbled onto your blog and read a few post. I like your style of writing.
21. February 2010 at 4:20 pm
Great tips. Thanks for sharing. Following you now from FFF MBC. Come by and visit me sometime too!
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26. February 2010 at 5:25 pm
Great reminders! Thanks!
Found you through FFF on MBC
21. March 2010 at 9:23 pm
Great tips! I am now following from MBC.
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26. March 2010 at 7:54 pm
I totally agree with the tips on communicating with your child. My little one is very active and independent. She has a mind of her own, so when you ask her something, she won’t pay attention immediately, I have to always kneel down to her level, so she can see my eyes and then I address politely. I have done it and it sure works. Great tip!
I am your new follower from MBC (FFF) come by when you get a chance, then you’ll see who the little active one
Have a great evening!
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4. April 2010 at 8:51 pm
Good advice! I learned recently one way to get children to be better listeners is to model good listening. I caught myself emptying the dishwasher, checking email, etc. while one of my children talked to me. A parent should give a child undivided attention and make eye contact to show a child how to be a good listener. (Easier said than done though. I try to do it most of the time.)
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