6 Strategies For Teaching Children To Control Impulses

Many behavior problems in children are due to a lack of impulse control. The ability to control impulses requires the learning of a series of skills that must be trained to learn to manage that impulsivity. 

Children who have difficulty controlling impulses have trouble stopping to think before acting. In addition, young children often act on their emotions, without thinking about the consequences. Teaching children strategies to control their impulses is an important task that must be done from the age of two.

Most children learn impulse control skills between the ages of 2 and 5, but older children sometimes continue to have impulsivity problems. With a little practice and dedication, your child can learn to keep his emotions in check and to think about his actions before taking them. Here are some of them.

Talk to your children about their feelings

When children understand the difference between feelings and behaviors, it is easier for them to begin to understand how to control their impulses. A child who understands that it is normal to feel angry but that hitting is not okay can see that he has options when it comes to coping with his feelings without reacting impulsively.

Understanding emotions is also key to helping your child become mentally strong, which is key to becoming a responsible adult. One of the keys for a child to be mentally strong is to be aware of their emotions. It is not about suppressing their feelings, but about teaching them to choose healthy ways to deal with them.

Train him in listening skills

Sometimes children behave impulsively because they are not listening. In fact, it is common for children with impulse control problems to get up or leave before the adult has finished speaking or to be moving while they are talking.

If you want your child to learn to control his impulsiveness, you must teach him and train him in listening skills. This is not done by shouting or repeating the same thing a thousand times. To begin, you must get the child to listen and not speak before they pay attention to you. And if you stop paying attention, stop talking and get it back.

Teach him problem-solving skills

Teaching your child to solve and manage their problems will give them confidence, which will help them to better control their impulses. Many children lose control out of sheer frustration at not knowing how to deal with a difficulty or conflict.

When children lack problem-solving skills, they look for ways to avoid facing them. Getting carried away by that frustration is one way to do it. Moreover, it is likely that, by not knowing how to approach them, they do not even recognize that they have a problem, and they react impulsively, without thinking about their options.

Teach anger management skills

Low tolerance for frustration leads to a large number of behavior problems. That is why you should teach your child to manage his anger so that he can calm down when he is upset. Strategies like time out can help and teach your child to calm himself. For this strategy to work it should not be used as a punishment. Thus, the child can resort to waiting time by himself, as an option to control anger at a certain time.

Make the house rules clear

Developing clear rules so that your child knows what is expected of him will give him options when it comes to controlling his impulses. A child who knows what to do is easier not to get carried away, especially if he is clear about the consequences of breaking the rules.

In this sense, it is important to be consistent and to enforce the rules related to routine especially strictly. Routine limits chaos, which can lead to reduced impulsivity. A consistent child stays more focused.

Provide an appropriate behavior model

Your child is going to learn a lot about controlling urges to see adults, especially their parents. If parents have trouble controlling anger and impulse management, yelling at problems or lashing out violently when they are frustrated they are offering a very negative model of impulsivity control.

A good way to set an example is to use self-talk by speaking out loud to yourself when you are dealing with a problem. This can help your child develop his own self-talk, which will help him manage his impulses. Making improvement a priority in your own life is the best way to teach your child to control impulses.