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Whether
you’re a parent, a teacher or a troop leader, kids can be a handful at
times. Here are some tips for keeping the chaos under control. The
kids are acting out and your head is splitting, so you start shouting
for them to calm down. Real effective, isn’t it? Tension
has sent your adrenaline soaring, and your brain shorts out accordingly.
You’re so mad you can’t think; sometime you can’t even get the
words out. Those parts of your brain have disconnected, and you need to
get your brain back so you can take charge.
Stop.
Breathe. Any large muscle action will help, so pick up something heavy
like that bike they’re fighting over. Stomp up a flight of stairs, put
away some groceries. Work big muscle groups and your head will clear
quickly. Give
the kids something physical to do: “You! Now! Run around the house!”
If they come back wired, have them take another lap. If it’s raining,
have them run to the top of the house. If they’re older, have them
haul out something heavy. No reason you can’t get some good from this.
When
you can’t stand the noise, sing. You’re
stuck in traffic, the kids are fighting in the backseat, and it feels
your head is going to explode. Instead of yelling, sing at the kids.
Loudly. Get them singing with you, so you can all calm down. When
you sing you work your diaphragm, which is another large muscle.
You’re also breathing deeply, which helps break up the adrenaline. You
can also sing tactically. If your teenagers fight, you can threaten to
sing songs from the sixties. Worse, threaten to sing in front of their
friends. It’s ruthless, but it’ll get their attention. You’re the grown-up If you let the kids provoke you, you can shout to your heart's content but you have abdicated your role as an adult. If you keep your head and insist on behaving like a grown-up, you can pull them over to your brand of behavior. The kids won't suddenly grow up or start seeing things your way-- they aren't grown-ups, they're kids and they have a different point of view. But they will settle down and stabilize-- perhaps reluctantly and secretly grateful for it. You get to behave appropriate as an adult, and they get to behave appropriately as children. And then you can all stop shouting.
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