As much as we would love to have it, parenting does not come with a manual. Being a parent is the most important role you will play if you have a child. Moulding and shaping the life of a young being is more important than anything else in this world. Along with parenting comes the element of discipline. Having said this, discipline can also be said to be on major challenge for parents with twins. While having one child is tough, twins add double to the trouble.
Disciplining twins tests a parent’s endurance and patience. With two children of the same age, it would seem that each child is always trying to get into the way of the other. Twins tend to feed off each other’s behaviour. They seem to have their own independent minds and are very likely to ignore instructions from their parents. Where put in a situation where discipline is required, it would be best to adopt the separation technique. One way of disciplining your twins would be to separate them and deal with them individually. For instance, if you find it difficult to put them into bed in the night without fights and arguments, then separate their bedtime routine. Maybe, it will help to get one child to start brushing his teeth and washing face while the other is using the potty and putting on his pyjamas. By working on their routine individually, they may be more inclined to follow instructions rather than getting distracted.
Another method of disciplining twins would be to distract them if they are throwing tantrums. This works especially well with toddlers, whose attention can easily be diverted. You could introduce some new toy to them or let them calm down by turning on their favorite cartoon. A change of scene could also help with disciplining and could be enough to divert their attention. If you have family support around you, then employ the help of older siblings, grandparents or other family members who are around. Having new people play or interact with them, the twins are likely to drop their bad behavior and get distracted. This way, as a parent, you can get some quiet time as well.
Discipline does not always have to harsh. With twins or more, it can get very frustrating and parents may be tempted to lose their cool and yell. However, children are inclined to pick on this and associate tantrums with getting their parent’s attention. Instead of aggravating the tantrums, make attempts at calming your children. Once they do so, you can explain to them how happy you are with their efforts to be good and praise them. They key is to reward them where they deserve it.
