As a parent, you might pull your hair out dealing with a rivalry with your children’s sports teams. And you might have sleepless dealing with children misbehaving and don’t listen.
But how do you handle the stress of sibling rivalry? While it may seem tempting to throw your hands up and give up, reading these six parent tips can help bring order to your home.
And if you’re expecting twins, especially identical twins, you want to take advantage of these six parenting tips to handle sibling rivalry. While it’s normal to have a sibling rivalry with identical twins, you don’t want them to turn into a lifelong rivalry.
1) Try not to Overreact to the Fights
As a parent, it’s a fine line between responding and not responding to your children’s fights. If you don’t respond as you should, one child might accuse you of supporting the sibling rivalry. But if you always respond, you risk giving the instigating child too much attention.
As a parent, gently step in between your children’s fights. But be careful not to appear to take a side and show favor.
2) Handle the Sibling Rivalry with Balance
If you didn’t witness the tiff between your children, you can expect each one to blame the other. But, as a parent, when you give out discipline, do it fairly and equally.
For example, if you grounded one child for two days for not doing the chores, apply the same punishment to the other sibling. That way, your children can’t accuse you of showing favoritism.
As a parent, if you observe one child showing more hostility to the other child for no reason, maybe they are angry about something else. For insight on how to help your children manage stress, read our blog post.
3) Know How a Sibling Rivalry Starts
It’s normal for children to pull each other’s hair and take each other’s toys. But verbal put-downs are another matter. If one child shows a pattern of putting down the other sibling, this can start a sibling rivalry.
The best way to stop rivalries is to stop them in the bud. Try to talk heart-to-heart with your children to see if you can solve the conflict.
And if you notice your children taking each other’s toys, don’t ignore them. Instead, consider taking away their toys until they change their behavior.
4) Don’t Compare Your Children
Sometimes one child might need more help than the other. As a result, resentment might grow. When possible, remind your children that you love them equally. It also doesn’t hurt to acknowledge their accomplishments and unique attributes.
5) Establish Consistent Rules
Having a set of rules with consistent enforcement helps with dealing with rivalry. An example is allowing each child to play video games for a certain amount of time or watch television. When your children break the rules, remind them that you’re punishing them for breaking the rules and not because you love them less.
6) Try Separating Your Children
When dealing with a sibling rivalry, it might be wise to have them spend some time alone. This can help your children do some personal reflection and help solve their sibling differences.
More About Sibling Rivalry
If you need dependable daycare for your children in Warrior, Alabama, consider Smoke Rise Childcare and Preschool. In addition, we are happy to provide parenting tips about handling sibling rivalry with our parental handbook.
And when it comes to discipline for your children, we strive to be fair and balanced. If basic discipline isn’t enough, we will schedule a meeting with you to find an amicable and mutual solution.