I'd like to ask other parents what for them is th best way to discipline kids. Is by talking to them? Grounding them? Or by punishing them? I'd like to hear your views about this matter

First of all smacking is a big no-no. I'd say punishing is one of the best ways. You can do things like say that you won't take them to the movies and then kids get really disappointed.

Sometimes a quick pop on the hand is warranted, in my opinion. A toddler who keeps pulling books down from a shelf, for instance, will not understand a long range consequence but he does understand that his hand hurts when he does the naughty action.

As kids get older, I think it becomes more and more important to talk with them about why their actions are inappropriate. Beyond the "I said so," they should know if what they did was wrong because they hurt someone, put themselves in danger, broke something, etc.

In my opinion, discipline is about helping kids learn to make responsible decisions, not training them to behave a certain way for fear of the consequences.

When I was a kid ... "I'm very dissapointed, lets sit down and I'll tell you why", hurt a lot more then a smack did.

Small kids dont understand words so you can bit them but older children will get offended if you bit them . They want to be heard so you should talk to them

With my daughter (5 years old) I explained her why she behave bad and don´t let her see her favorite tv program. I feel that she really understand and learn a lesson from it.

Every child after about 2 begins understanding losing privileges. As long as they understand that good behavior entitles them to what they enjoy and bad behavior makes it go away quick, it can be a good way of keeping order. But you have to be consistent, and as parents you need to back each other up on it. Can't go soft on something one day and hard on it the next. The children don't understand that.

Originally Posted by mikey

When I was a kid ... "I'm very dissapointed, lets sit down and I'll tell you why", hurt a lot more then a smack did.

But that must have been after you were old enough to sit down and understand all the words being said to you. That doesn't work with toddlers.

I also think you need to know yourself well. What things are you personally okay with? If you are giving a punishment you aren't comfortable with the child can pick up that feeling and misread it as maybe what they were doing was so wrong.

Sometimes, NOT punishing can have a greater effect, especially with teenagers. A well placed silence used to work wonders with my sons. You have to be VERY close to your kids for that to work.