How do you deal with "Drama Queens"?

[Momof4]

Just have to add: Dont care who you are and how well you run your day care, almost every child knows (it's just human nature) when mom and dad walk through the door, your authority is no longer priority. The parent now runs the show. For me its a good example of how they work at home, some kids see their parents an dwalk the line, if I ask them to pick up, the parent gives them the look and they get right to it. However, if the parent is not authoritative you can tell because I will ask the child to pick up and the child looks at the parent for guidance, the parent doesnt re-affirm my orders and the child goes right for their shoes. sometimes if I feel it needed, i will go to the child take them by the hand in fron of parent and lead them to the mess and say, "i need you to pick up your toys before you go home" thankyou. some parents just dont help!!!

Oh, I could not agree more with this! But I find the children behave so well for me when the parents are not here. It's because they know my rules and my expectations of them and what I will not tolerate and that I follow through with everything I say. Parents are too tired to do that, but it's my job.

[treeholm]

I keep seeing references to time-outs for children who are very young. It sounds like a good idea, so I'm wondering how you enforce it. If I were to tell a child to sit on the couch and not move, and they didn't listen, what then? Would you physically restrain the child? That's where my discomfort lies. I can't physically force a child to sit in a time out unless I just pop them in the playpen. Is there a risk that the playpen is then seen as a punishment instead of their comfy resting place?
I'm of the generation who was allowed to spank my own children (not that I would ever spank a child these days!!), and for my own children, the threat of a spanking was enough to smarten them up. My granddaughter doesn't listen nearly as well as my own children did, and I'm wondering what today's alternatives are. She is 3 and a half.

[Momof4]

I start timeouts as young as 18 months but I have a chair in the corner that they are not supposed to go on because it turns back and forth and I'm afraid of them tipping it over. So I use it as my timeout chair. I sit right beside them and tell them what they did wrong. I believe children that age have the attention span of fruit flies so my timesouts only last maybe 20 seconds. Then I hold both their hands in mine, look at them in the eyes and tell them one more time what they did wrong and if they made somebody else cry I take them over and have them hug their friend.

Once children reach the age of 2 and up they understand a lot better what they did wrong and I also get them to apologize but I follow this general method no matter what the age of the child.

[treeholm]

Thanks Momof4, that makes sense that you sit beside them. I have used timeouts with older children who could understand that if they got off the step too soon, I started timing again, but I was puzzled how to do this with a very small child. My granddaughter at 3 and a half is just starting to figure out that the timeout is over fast if she just stays there and says she is sorry LOL

[Bookworm]

Thanks everyone. I have been consistent with her, and I think she is just one very stubborn girl. I talked to the mom this morning about how I deal with this behaviour (she asked), so hopefully she can follow through at home too.