It's not unusual to see an unreasonable child lying on the ground drumming his heels. Beside him is a desperate mother yelling at the top of her lungs.
If you took all the parenting styles around the world and ranked them by their gentleness, the Inuit(因纽特人) approach would certainly rank near the top. All the moms mention one golden role: Inuit's no-yelling policy is their central component to raising cool-headed kids. The culture views scolding, or even speaking to children in all angry voice, as inappropriate, although little kids are pushing parents' buttons.
Playful "storytelling" is another trick to sculpting kids' behavior. Parents "retell" what happened when a boy threw a tantrum(发脾气)by way of what Shakespeare would understand all too well: putting on a "drama". After the child has calmed down, the parents will review what happened when the child misbehaved, usually starting with a question: "Can you show us how to throw a tantrum?" If he takes the bait and performs the action, the mom will ask a follow-up question with a playful tone. For example: "Does that seem right?" or "Are you a baby?" She is getting across the idea that "big boys" won't throw a tantrum.
What you do in response to your children's emotions shapes their brains. So next time, seeing your boy misbehave, try using the Inuit's storytelling approach. And don't forget to keep coo1. After all, boys will be boys.
A. Don't shout or yell at small children.
B. Then the child has to think what he should do.
C. They teach the children challenges of life on the land.
D. Raising a well-behaved kid is really a head-scratching thing.
E. Kids' brains are still developing the circuitry needed for self-contro1.
F. But this storytelling differs hugely from those fairy tales full of moral lessons.
G. Those are the very things that the traditional knowledge of hunting cultures teaches and passes on to the younger generation.
