Your five-year old will not listen to you when you ask her to turn off the television and neither will your 8\eight-year old give you a gentle response when you ask him about school. The problem is not with the age but with the attitude and that seems to be constant in children.
You will see that most kids have mood swings and that affects their behavior. The main reason behind it could be bullying at school, not being able to express himself/herself to the parents or even finding it difficult to adjust to the changing ambience at home, in school and among friends. But you are a parent and you need to deal with it.
Find out the root cause
- Do not pester them with questions when they snap: When they snap at you after your first question, try and avoid asking them too many questions. All the responses will be in an irritated tone and you will draw him farther away from you.
- Talk to the parents of their friends: If this bad mood phase continues then it is time to talk the parents of your child’s friends. See if they are also facing the same. If not then maybe something is bothering your child. The mood swings do not last very long.
- Give them some special attention and make them feel loved: Don’t overdo it but bake a cake for her or get a pair of new shoes and that can brighten up their mood and they will talk to you.
- Try and understand their moods: Your child is in a bad mood but that is not all. There are gloomy moods, violent moods, furious moods, sad and sullen moods and each have a different meaning. Understand the mood and then try and pacify her.
Handle it
- Be a friend more than a parent. With children of their age your child feels that is cool to be with them and not their parents. Make them realize that parents can also be as cool as their friends.
- Involve them in family activity. It is the job of a child to be angry or upset with people around them but it is your job to make them understand the values of life and realize that it does not take much effort to be happy and smile.
- Depending on the mood, give them a shoulder, sometimes to cry on, sometimes to lean on and sometimes to just stand by.
