Positive Parenting Tips – Managing Sibling Rivalry
So long as you have more than one child in the home, sibling rivalry is an inevitable circumstance. There’s no way to end sibling rivalry once and for all, but you can learn ways to become a positive parent who manages sibling rivalry. Today I will share a few tips on how you can work to curb sibling rivalry to keep your home as peaceful as possible, and try to nurture a long-lasting positive relationship between your children.
Adjust your Expectations
Every parent has the fantasy of their children getting along happily and in a loving way at all times. This is a very unrealistic expectation. While sibling rivalry will occur regardless of how well you parent or try to deter it, there are different reasons that it will happen. When you start to adjust your expectations, perhaps setting some ground rules on these bickering moments, then you start to see less extensive sibling rivalry moments.
What Would Help You
Think about sibling rivalry from the perspective of yourself when you were a child. Sure if you were an only child this may not work, but if you had siblings, think about how your parents responded to you. What things could your parents have said that would have encouraged sibling rivalry to be minimal? Do you recall any specific instances? Try to respond to sibling rivalry in a way you know would have worked for you as a young child who had siblings.
Teamwork Building
Often times siblings simply get into this bickering moments because they are jealous or trying to be the “better child” in the home. These moments are fueled by jealousy, confusion, and the lack of understanding of teamwork. Try to have your children partake in one teamwork building activity per day. This can be a board game, or chores that require the siblings to work together. You can get creative and change it up each day, but building the teamwork mentality will unite them and help manage sibling rivalry in a big way.
Remain Compassionate yet Consistent
As with any area of parenting that you wish to make a positive change with, you must remain compassionate in tone, yet consistent in response. Develop a strategy for how you will manage sibling rivalry and if there will be any consequences set forth for bad behavior during moments when your children are arguing with each other. Speak in a strong yet compassionate tone and set a consistent response in how this moment is handled. This will ensure your children know where the limits are and encourage them to try getting along.
There you have it, a few positive parenting tips on managing sibling rivalry. Being a parent to multiple children isn’t easy, but you can make it easier when you follow these tips to keep sibling rivalry at a minimum.
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