What discipline methods are effective for a 6 year old boy?

[Jemster]

Hi
I would appreciate any suggestions for effective discipline methods for my 6 year old son. He can be lovely but he can also quite frequently be rude to me, ignore my requests and generally have a bit of an attitude. He gets very cross and stroppy if I ask him to do something when it doesn't suit him.

Recently when I've threatened to take things away etc as punishment he just says he doesn't care. I'm starting to run out of ideas that will actually bother him and the worst thing is I think he knows it!

Any advice please?

Hi Jemster. I have exactly the same from my nearly 6 year old. I am trying (sometimes, well, lots if the time, unsuccessfully! ) to stay calm and get caught up in a n argument with him. I have found that when he says he doesn't care, he is lying. Always follow through with your sanction, even if he apoears unaffected by it, it shows him that you mean what you say.
Try to find positives in things he does, so when he does something that you ask straight away, go over the top with "thank you for doing that the first time, that makes me so happy!" With the rudeness, I tend to say "We do not talk to each other like that in our family dc, if you continue, I will ignore you" My ds hates being ignored. I have gone long car journeys ignoring the attention seeking that sometimes follows this. But he soon stops trying to get me to talk and eventually apologises and asks if I will talk to him again. I think the key is will power and lots of deep breath and count to 10 moments! Good luck xx

Is he really not bothered when he loses toys, or do you think he has worked out that if he pretends he's not bothered you don't go through with it? I think I'd be calling his bluff. If he says he is not bothered then there is no point keeping the toy, so you may as well get rid anyway.

Take away screen time?

I try to find a consequence that fits the crime, IYSWIM. So, DS(7) is rude to me:

"DS I will not be spoken to in that way, go to your room for 7 minutes and come back when you have found a polite way to talk"

Or if he's being really oppositional, I just tell him he must be exhausted to be acting like that and needs to chill in his room for a bit.

Misbehaving with toy/screen time, toy confiscated or privilege taken away. If you threaten a consequence, you must follow through! Ignore all this "don't care" business and do as you say. Otherwise he'll only learn to continue with such behaviour.

Is there an activity he likes to do? Is he very social? Mine hates to be sent to his room as he is very much a people person, so the mention of such normally sets him straight.

Do you praise for good behaviour? Could he be wanting a bit more mummy time, and be acting out for attention?

123 magic.

My 6 yr old ds is very similar. Although I have followed through with taking beloved toys away which works for that time. His behaviour is good for a week, he gets it back and then not long after does something else to have it taken away again! I just keep doing it! The ultimate threat is no tv or DVDs. This is his greatest fear. I sometimes use this as a threat to get him to do something and he does it. He hasn't called my bluff yet, but I would do it. Maybe that is more effective than the toy thing?

My ds is the same with eating all his tea. He sulks and says he doesn't want it. I bribe him with no pudding unless he finishes it (he loves a pudding) but often he'll just say "ok then. I won't have pudding". I leave it on the table a while expecting him to think about it and change his mind but he won't when his mind is made up.

My ds is going through a 'good' phase at the moment and behaving well. We've been exercising him a lot and doing lots of things at weekends etc. Not sure of he's behaving because of school starting again.