Obviously, you'll need to set up some boundaries for this. When children feel they aren't just being told what to do, they are more likely to want to participate.Īsk them what they think would help them get their homework done. Parents often think that by collaborating with their kids, they are releasing control and authority, but collaboration is known to make those included feel heard and valued. They would both get really frustrated with me. They were exhausted from a day of education.

I found they didn't have the stamina to sit with me and learn. I felt like our home had become a place of peace again as I used the tools I had learned, but then my kids started coming home from school with homework. I started immersing myself in parenting books, trying to find theoretical and practical ways I could create a calm home, which led me to train to become a certified positive-discipline educator. I remember reacting often with yelling, and after some time, I thought there had to be another way. I found myself getting caught in power struggles with toddlers and couldn't understand why they wouldn't listen to me.

It has been edited for length and clarity.Īfter teaching in elementary schools for five years, I thought I would easily be able to manage my own children, but after having two, I quickly found out parenting was a very different skill from teaching. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Laura Linn Knight.

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