Page 168 - The Intentional Parent

return home.
One parent I know solved the car battle problems by giving out five coupons on the way to the store and five coupons on the way back. The five coupons on the way to the store could be redeemed for snacks. The five coupons on the way home allowed them access to the snacks.
Whatever method you use to reward behavior, it is always a good idea to rehearse what you will do on long trips or in situations where you know there will be trouble. Let your kids know what you expect in terms of behavior, as well as how they will be rewarded for good behavior.
ALOOF OLDER SIBS
My seven-year-old son worships the ground my eleven-year- old son walks on, but my eleven-year-old won't give him the time of day because he is too interested in being cool. I am worried that my seven-year-old will develop an inferiority complex because my older son puts him down. How can I get my eleven-year-old son to be more sensitive?
The good news is that as your sons get older, the difference in their age will matter less. As time passes your younger son should be able to earn the respect of his older brother. Junior- high-school-aged kids, or kids between the ages of eleven and fourteen, are consumed by coolness. I can't blame you for worrying that your younger son's self-esteem will suffer from being around his brother. One way you can mediate the situation is by pleading your younger son's case to his older brother. Don't beg the older child to be more sensitive; instead tell him that you expect it, because your younger son's feelings are important to
The Intentional Parent by Peter J. Favaro, Ph.D. 168