Teaching your toddler to obey is one of the most important building blocks for their continued development. Learn how to establish a healthy foundation of obedience in your home.
Estimated reading time: 2 minutes
Toddler obedience might be the most common parenting topic for this stage of life. At some point, every toddler will discover disobedience. And the results might not be pretty.
As a parent, you’re likely wondering how you can get your toddler to just, well, behave again. Disciplining a two or three-year old might feel cruel. But through wise and loving care, you can build a healthy foundation of obedience in your home.
Here a few things to think about and try:
There’s a good chance his or her disobedience is simply a product of being a toddler. Learning to obey will be a key lesson for the upcoming years of your child’s development. For more advice on this topic, check out our parenting resources here.
Dr. Daniel Huerta is Vice President of Parenting and Youth for Focus on the Family, overseeing the ministry’s initiatives that equip moms and dads with biblical principles and counsel for raising healthy, resilient children rooted in a thriving faith.
He is a psychologist, a licensed clinical social worker, and the author of 7 Traits of Effective Parenting. For many years, he has provided families with practical, biblically-based and research-based parenting advice on topics including media discernment, discipline, communication, mental health issues, conflict resolution, and healthy sexuality in the home. He is passionate about coming alongside parents as they raise contributors, instead of consumers, in a culture desperately in need of God’s kingdom.
Dr. Huerta has been interviewed by various media outlets including Fox News, Fatherly, Christianity Today, WORLD Magazine, and CBN, and he is a frequent guest on Christian radio stations across the nation. He’s also written for publications, including The Washington Post, on various topics related to marriage and parenting. He participated in the development of Focus on the Family’s Launch Into the Teen Years, a resource to help parents prepare their kids for adolescence, and he speaks regularly at retreats, conventions, and online events.
Dr. Huerta has maintained a private practice in Colorado Springs, Colorado since 2003 and has served families through Focus on the Family since 2004. He and his wife, Heather, have been married since 1997 and love being parents to their three teen children, Alex, Lexi, and Maci.
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