Toddler Discipline: The Stop Sign

dis·ci·pline  /ˈdɪsəplɪn/  noun  1. training to act in accordance with rules



Break things?  Who me?



Miss A is 18-months old.  I love her developmental stage right now!  She's talking, dancing, giggling, singing and so much more!  She continually puts a smile on my face or does something to make me laugh.  But there have also been some frustrations.  (Hard to believe, I know!) While we have child-proofed anything remotely dangerous, there are still some cabinets that simply can't be locked (we've tried!)  and I was constantly telling her no.  Obviously, I needed a better plan for disciplining her, for training her to know what is allowed and what is not. 

One area we've struggled with is the DVD collection.  Our entertainment center cannot be child-proofed (we've tried!) and Miss A quickly figured out that she could not only open it, but empty every DVD case, remove the discs and snap them in half.  Not good.  I moved this vintage cabinet into the living room and sorted the collection into the cabinet.  She could still open the door, so I cut out stop signs from red construction paper and wrote STOP on each one.   You can make these little signs much cuter, but we don't have a color printer and my Silhouette is packed away for now.

Sweet Hubby honestly didn't think it would work and I wasn't convinced, but what did I have to lose? The verdict: It took a few explanations to her that the sign meant it is a NO-NO and she must ask for help before opening it.  Now when she wants to watch a movie, she goes to the cabinet, points to the sign, looks at Mommy or Daddy and says, "Hep!"  I'm shocked at how well this has worked and I've added a few more signs around the house to other areas.  Not only does she now have to ask for permission to get the movies, but it's eliminated the danger of broken discs around the house!

If you try it, let me know how it works in your house!  We're so happy to have a better way to deal with this issue than constant nagging!