A note about your child taking things that belong to someone else

The moment you realize your child has taken something that belongs to someone else, say a few stern words with tones of disappointment, such as "we never take something that doesn't belong to us." If you feel your child is impulsively taking things from others, help reduce the temptation by keeping the desired object out of reach or vision.

If you think your child may be feeling jealous or wanting your attention, remember to have once a day "special time" with your child. Start when it's convenient for you, do the activity of the child's choosing, and end 10 or 15 minutes later with an alarm from a clock, declaring special time is over.

If you think your child is testing you, try to be very consistent with your rules and responses when your child breaks a rule. Children can become sensitive and confused if the rules seem to change. Sometimes children do like to test parents. Small but consistent punishments are always best, like taking away a favorite toy for an hour if the child breaks a rule. Shorter consequences actually work better than big ones!

It might be a good idea to review the rules of the house so your child can learn about consequences in an objective way without getting "addicted" to getting you excited.