Customer Reviews

Time-out for Toddlers

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4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(2)

 

 

I live in overseas and the only method I have been told to discipline the youngsters is to spank or yell at them. I bought this book when my little one just around two years old. I find this book is very useful and the instruction is very clear. My son used to refuse to eat any kinds of vegetable except brocoli but after I used time-out twice, this problem never appear again. Time-out may not be able to discipline every misbehavior but at least it can help both parent and child calming down for several minutes. I find it useful not just for correcting children's mishaviors but also an alternative for parents without yelling and spanking.

I read this book 3 years ago when my now 6 year old was 3 and I also had a toddler. Now, with four boys 6 and under, I'm still following this book's advice. I'm constantly getting comments from people about how well behaved my boys are. They are shocked to find out that I use time outs and rarely spank or raise my voice. Others who pan this book for overanalyzing the time out are not disciplined enough themselves to apply excellent discipline techniques to discipline their own kids!

My daughter was and is continuing to grow into a stubborn little girl who knows exactly what she wants. She was beginning to display tantrums with me. I immediately turned to Amazon, looking for a self-help book about tantrums in toddlers. I had no idea about timeouts. I grew up in a home where my parents spanked, hit me with any object they could find. I wanted to learn about disciplining without force, without physical abuse. I wanted to know why parents begin to hit their children harder and harder as their children make them angrier. My mother would hit me so hard that her hand would hurt her, but I never showed any pain as a reaction. I was afraid this would happen to me now that I was a parent.
As soon as I read this, I perfected the skill immediately. It's an excellent book. I didn't even finish reading it---only read it halfway and then leant it to my friend who had a child who she was too soft on, who had terrible tantrums as a result. I bought a timer in Walmart with a spring for 3.00 and placed this on the dresser, chose a spot (the bed in our one bedroom condo) with the door open, and put the timer on for the number of minutes of her age (2 years old, then 2 minutes to sit on the bed). Read the book---it goes on to explain how to do this. After only 2 times of doing it, and being consistant, it worked. My daughter is so obedient and afraid of timeout. It's as if I hit her, like my mother did when she disciplined me over 20 years ago. There are secrets taught in this book that I never realized. Timeout's absolutely a great concept. Yes, some people just look at me as if I'm crazy in the caribbean (where they still hit their chidren in daycares and schools with their hand, belt, etc) but it's beginning to be taught there as well, to begin introducing timeouts to the educated caregiver. Great concept. Great book.

A good practical guide that takes the emotion out of discipline and gave me a sense of direction.

This is one of the most poorly written books I have ever read. The material was not very helpful -- it has been explained better elsewhere. The author writes as if parents are idiots and he is the only one with the answers. Save your money, time and sanity and don't bother with this.

I was very disappointed by this book. It offered confusing explanations of on obiously simple technique that can be explained in a page. The author was self-congradulatory on coming-up with "feel-good" solutions to discipine problems. I would most stongly urge interested parents to get the book entitled "Dare to Discipline" if they want solid advice that is well written.