In Babies and more We think that popular punishments (such as banning things or beating) are not an effective way to make children understand that they did wrong and that they are not very educational. Our children often do not understand why they are punished and it is our job as parents to teach them how to say what is right and what is wrong.
A mother realized that effectively the withdrawal of video games was not enough, so He decided to give his son a lesson on discipline after being expelled from school for three days.
Demetris Payne is a single mother of four children in Louisiana, United States. One day he saw that he had a missed call from his 13-year-old son Jadarien's school. He immediately knew that something must have happened, so he called and was told that he had been suspended for three days, because he had responded badly to a teacher.
It seemed to him that suspending him for three days from school was too much, so he asked them if they could not apply that measure within the school. Since his son had gotten into trouble on previous occasions, they told him at school that that would not be possible and the boy had to go home.
As soon as they got home, Demetris did what many parents usually do when it comes to punishing their children: he took away his mobile and his video games. Then she left for work, leaving her son with her 70-year-old grandfather who lives with them at home. But things did not go as she had planned.
"It was like a vacation"
Upon returning from work, he found that they were both having fun together and eating strawberries. "I thought 'Oh no.' It was like a vacation"says the mother in an interview for CBS News. Then she decided that she would take other measures to show her discipline.
First, he called his son and handed him a rake, asking him to clean the yard of the house. Once he was finished, he told him that he also would volunteer his cleaning services during the days he was at home because of his suspension from school.
Of course, at first her son didn't think she was serious. "Sometimes I can be too soft on him," says the mother. But she was serious, and posted an image on a Facebook group, which she later shared on her personal profile, where he announced the services his son would do voluntarily.
My son was suspended from school for three days due to discipline. He will do his garden work, clean his yard, mow his lawn if they have a mower, pick up the garbage or wash his car for free. Maximum three hours. If someone has a rake that could donate it would be great. And he will do everything for free.
The mother immediately began receiving messages and requests from other people requesting her son's services. He took him home by house and waited for him outside while he watched him do the work. "Never complained"says the mother. The boy spent about two hours working and cleaned about eight houses in his community.
Once he finished work, his mother took him to the library, where he spent the afternoon reading and doing some homework. "I explained that I had not asked him to do those jobs to punish and punish him, but to teach him a lesson about discipline. It doesn't matter if the teacher is right or wrong, you should always respect the teachers, respect the adults"says the mother. After three days of suspension, Jadarien was happy to return to class.
The reactions in social networks about this mother's lesson
For the most part, the comments the mother received were positive, where many of the Facebook users applauded the way he had decided to teach his son about discipline. They were glad that despite having to work and take care of their other three children, he had been in charge of leaving a true and valuable lesson to his son: the expulsion from school is not a vacation.
And although I also find it great that the mother was dedicated to teaching her about discipline, there is something that has always seemed strange or curious to me when I read about these cases: Was it really necessary to publish your child's picture on networks? On the one hand I am pleased when parents act to make their children understand what they did wrong and how they should behave. But on the other hand, I think that uploading an image of children to the networks to let the world know that they are being punished seems excessive.
About, the mother comments that Jadarien did not feel ashamed of the publication, but simply graced him and continued with his responsibilities. She hopes that her other children of 3, 8 and 17 years have also learned something from the lesson, but that if necessary, she would do it again. "Keep encouraging your children. When one path does not work, try another. Get to the root of the problem", the mother ends.
