鈥淭he fact is: kids notice difference,鈥� says Betsy Brown Braun, the bestselling author of Just Tell Me What to Say. And without a more advanced censoring mechanism, they will likely point it out 鈥� often at the worst moment. What鈥檚 important, says Braun, is to make sure neither party 鈥� your child nor the person your child has noticed 鈥� feels offended or embarrassed. Here鈥檚 her MO in these potentially difficult moments:
鈥淲e want to acknowledge that they鈥檝e noticed the difference. So in a quiet voice say, 鈥榃e鈥檙e going to talk about it more when we get outside the market.鈥� If your child keeps going, say, 鈥業 don鈥檛 know how that lady feels about that nose. She might love it or not love it but we鈥檙e going to talk about it when we get out of the store.鈥欌��
Check out The essential guide to managing your child’s behavior and discipline. In our guide, you can see all the aspects of children’s behavior that we cover. Our guide helps you understand your child鈥檚 behavior, respond with care, and use discipline effectively.
Here鈥檚 how 4 other parenting experts say to respond…
Heidi Allen Garvin
The popular Mormon mom blogger suggests treating children’s questions with tact… and a big dose of compassion. Format: Article
Richard Weissbourd
It鈥檚 a question that makes parents cringe, but the author of The Parents We Mean to Be says to treat the moment with compassion to avoid making the situation worse. Format: Video (1:37)
Jane Healy
The bestselling author of Your Child鈥檚 Growing Mind says that before knowing how to answer, it鈥檚 essential first to understand what is going on in your child鈥檚 mind. Format: Article
Johanna Stein
“It’s OK. The legs are in the closet.” A series of unfortunate events followed when the comedienne鈥檚 daughter asked this question. Here鈥檚 how she responded. Format: Video (2:20)
