Page 26 - SB-Rules are your Friends

Learning that Rules are your friends, can allow children to give themselves permission to evaluate and accept Good Thinking rules, without threat of punitive consequences. They will learn to determine and set Good Thinking rules for themselves, outside of the “adult” system of rule making and thereby increases their personal control.
Unfortunately, some children live in environments (their home, school, neighborhood) in which rules are arbitrary and capricious (the result of Stinky Thinking). They may assume that rules in other environments are the same. This story can help modify some of that early life experience and begin to establish a more realistic and tolerant perception of rules.
Over the years of using this program, we have realized that this particular story can impact an unintended group of children. The story is intended for children who are “habitual rule breakers.”
But it can also have a lot of value for another group... the “ridged rule keepers.” There are a few children who adhere to every rule or perceived rule in a dogged manner that may cause almost as many problems as being a rule breaker. These are children who will make no exception. If the rule says, "don’t....,” they never will “do...,”
even if it is obvious that in this particular situation, the rule is not appropriate. The problem is not that they obey rules. The problem is that they are too anxious to risk interpreting a situation in any way other than, as the rule states. Following rules to the letter can cause many life problems because you are inflexible in too many situations. You will also be unable to evaluate novel situations and generate your own personal appropriate rule to deal with these situation.
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