You lower your child’s use of their potential when you let fail to instill discipline. A smart kid acting out is a retarded child.
Exactly right. There are many fine sharp minds that look for ways to outsmart, evade, ridicule and basically create chaos. They need to be channeled. Much of that work can be done by discussion and modeling good behavior but first their attention needs to be captured.
My third son was about to be expelled from preK because the teachers were so sweet and mushy my son was running roughshod over them.
When I was approached I said, “Give me 2 weeks”. He had always been obedient with me because he knew I wouldn’t stand for bad behavior (no spankings up til then, just consistent time out etc). I made up an index card with columns for main teacher and art, gym etc. Each day each teacher had to put a smiley face, a straight face or a frowney face in her column for that day and tell him what they wanted. Stay in line, don’t talk etc.
First day 5 frowney faces 5 stinging swaps on his bottom. Second day 3, third day 1 and a mountain of excuses why he shouldn’t have gotten one. I responded. “I’m not there, all I know is the cards, it’s your job to get smiles. No more frowns and since he got a star for each smile he earned enough to go for ice cream. He stayed in that school through 8th grade and then went to catholic High School. Never needed another spanking but all the words in the world wouldn’t have substituted for the spanks he needed and received. He retained enough intelligence to become a chemical engineer and get a MBA.