The Well-Behaved Child: Discipline That REALLY Works! By John Rosemond
Why I Read This Book
This book is different to any other parenting book I’ve read. I was hooked on page one. And I was turned off on page two. But someone I trusted had recommended it to me, so I persisted in reading through to the end and I’m glad I did. The Well-Behaved Child offers sensible, useful advice and opinion on a wide variety of parenting issues including tantrums (children’s, not parents’), sibling rivalry, stealing, lying, defiance and more.
What I Liked About This Book
One thing I liked is the way the author teaches and encourages the parent to act and talk like a leader in the family, rather than a friend or a servant. I liked the ‘short and sweet principle’, not pandering to silliness, using a ‘ticket system’, and the author’s views on reward based plans. I also like his ‘referee rule’, how to deal with lying and stealing. I liked his views on encouraging children to have hobbies rather than activities, and his views on television and screen time.
I found chapter six delightfully down to earth and full of common sense.
What I Disliked About This Book
I really didn’t like the ‘Piling it On’ section, or the author’s views on family meal times. I really disagreed with his views on the family bed. I had mixed feelings about a couple of things like ‘the Doctor’ and the ‘Godfather Principle’.
The Take-Away
The big message I got out of The Well-Behaved Child was that parenting takes effort and focused attention. Some other things are:
- some child psychology is ‘psychobabble’,
- don’t be afraid of children or their moods and behaviour,
- have high expectations of children,
- naughty children are not happy children,
- reverse psychology is pretty effective.
A Quote From the Book
Here’s a quote to end: “The most well-behaved kids come from homes where parents are comfortable with their authority.”
It’s a truism, isn’t it? – The way we parent our children does affect the way our children behave and it affects family life. We need to couple firmness with a quiet, polite tones. We want to train up our children, taming their spirits, and never crushing them, being the parent and not the ‘buddy’. Helping our children to feel safe, good about themselves and happy. The Well-Behaved Child has got some good ideas and tips on improving family life and making parenting more effective. You might not agree with everything you read, but there is so much good stuff here that you can chew the meat and spit out the bones. This is a book worth having on your bookshelf to refer to again and again.
Buy it here: The Well-Behaved Child