by Amanda Evans

Created on: July 27, 2009   Last Updated: July 29, 2009

Getting your child to apologise for their mistakes can be quite a challenge for many parents. Do you find yourself getting frustrated? Do you find that even with all your hard work that nothing seems to be working? If so then this article is for you.

You may have heard about Supernanny, the prominent English nanny that visits families to help them discipline their out of control children. This program is based on teaching parents how to control their children and regain control. It also explains some really great techniques when it comes to discipline and even getting your child to apologise for their bad behavior.

One of the techniques that can work really well is called the "timeout". This method can work no matter what age your child is. The basic principle to the timeout is to give you child some time to reflect on their behavior. The timeout procedure will only be successful if you follow it correctly and continue to us it.

So what is the timeout principle and how do you implement it?

The first part of the timeout procedure is to pick a spot or location in your home that will be used for the timeout. This could be the bottom step of your staircase, a corner in a room, or a room you do not use. If your child is put on time out they will remain in your chosen location for 1 minute for every year of their lives. If your child is two their timeout will be for two minutes.

Before placing your child on timeout you need to set some rules and boundaries. You must always give your child a warning before putting them on timeout too. If your child is doing something that you don't want them too such as hitting a sibling then you will have the perfect opportunity to use the timeout. You will need to explain to your child that the behavior they are displaying is not acceptable and that if they continue to do it they will be placed on timeout. If the behavior continues you take your child and place them on timeout. You need to come down to their level and get them to look at you as you explain that they have had their warning and that what they are doing is not acceptable behavior. Under no circumstances should you shout are your child during this procedure. Once you have explained this to them you then proceed to explain that they must remain on timeout for their allocated time.

In most cases especially if this procedure is new to your discipline routine your child will test you and refuse to remain in timeout. If this happens you need to remain calm and just

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