Have you ever found yourself in any of these situations? How often does it happen to you? Do you think you could do things differently?As parents, it’s very common to say these phrases to our children to get them to do what we ask, but it’s harder to follow an instruction if we don’t know why we’re being asked or what the purpose is. In these situations, what works best is to be disruptive.Being disruptive means doing things differently, finding ways to help our children understand what they need to do, what’s wrong, and, in general, to educate them optimally. In short, this is very similar to parenting focused on positive discipline.To understand this concept, let’s first talk about positivity. Have you ever met someone with a positive outlook on life? What is that person like emotionally? How are their relationships with others? What phrases do they say often?When we’re around positive people, their mere presence makes us feel good. And we’re talking about people who have realistic positive thinking, that is, people who know that bad things are temporary and not permanent, that failure is an obstacle and not the end, who don’t generalize, who recover quickly from adversity, and who have better relationships with others. People with extreme positivity are those who don’t assess risks, think everything will turn out fine, and just sit and wait for things to happen; they have rigid thinking and little responsibility for circumstances.Returning to positivity in positive parenting, we mean noticing everything your children do achieve and everything they’re interested in that can support their optimal development.In other words, this type of parenting is about being for our children: respectful, motivating, showing genuine interest in them, being gentle, fostering life skills, all with the sole aim that these teachings, at the ages our children are now, will have a long-term effect on their lives so that they become respectful people, able to solve problems efficiently, and have better relationships with others, among other things.If you’ve decided to implement positive discipline in raising your children, consider these techniques:Connect before correcting. We all feel better when we know we are heard, validated, and understood. First listen, then validate what they’re feeling, and then help them understand the situation.Be firm without ceasing to be kind. Express what needs to be done with the right words. You don’t have to choose between the two.Focus on solutions, not repercussions. Punishments almost always generate unpleasant emotions; showing that there are optimal possibilities within adversity that benefit them fosters responsibility and resilience.Let them make their own decisions. Give them space to choose; you can guide them toward what seems best for their development. This way, they build self-confidence, which is fundamental at their age. If they make a wrong decision, help them take responsibility for the consequences.Teach by example. We learn more from what we see others do than from what they tell us. The same goes for your children; they’re watching everything you say and do. Help them by being a role model. Remember that what you do carries much more weight than what you say.Positive discipline is documented as effective because it invites mothers and fathers to treat their children with love and respect without losing the necessary authority to guide them. This doesn’t mean that if you already treat your children with love, you’re necessarily following this approach, nor does it mean that if you’re following another parenting approach, it’s not valid.Let’s remember that the better informed we are, the better we can choose the type of parenting that suits us as responsible adults and is optimal for our children; that will be the parenting approach you should follow.The education your children receive with us is based on curiosity, collaboration, problem-solving, cultivating from these early years self-esteem, independence, creativity, and emotional self-regulation, hand in hand with families.In our teaching-learning process, our task is to form confident, happy, and curious students who are helped in their development for the next stages of life and school grades. All of this within a community that cares for, promotes values, fosters empathy, and a global mindset.
