Does anyone have any advice how I can get my 6 yr old son to be more independent and less bossy?

Question

It is getting very bad. He tells me I'm not the boss of him and he is very demanding. If he doesn't get what he wants he throws a fit. His 3 yr old brother is more independent then he is. He doesn't play with his brother he bosses him around to where I don't even like when they play together. I just want to help him before it's out of control

Answer 1

Send him to a holiday camp.

Are you praising his younger brother/comparing them? Paying him more attention? Your elder son might just be feeling left out and is vying for your/your husband's attention.

he might be feeling 'lost' at school, so he bosses his younger brother to feel important.

Just offer him unconditional love, disciplining when necessary but in love.

Wishing you have a happy family.

Answer 2

you have to lay down the law your the boss and its time he sees that okay you have got to be strict and ground him

Answer 3

ignore his fits....even in public. I know how you feel, I had i had a very difficult foster child once. she would scream no matter what or where we were. It was embarrassing and people looked at me like I was abusing her. But in the end she was so sweet. I would ignore her and when we were home I would put her in the corner. She would throw a fit there too at first. But I wouldnt let her out until she calmed down. And me and my other daughter would just go on about or business. When she seen she was missing out she would calm herself down. And make sure you reward for good behavior and ignore bad behavior...hope i was helpful

Answer 4

You should have seen last night's episode of Super Nanny. Similiar situation. Good for you for wanting to deal with this before it gets worse. Just stick to your guns, don't let him get his way anytime there's a conflict, but don't go looking for conflicts, either. You ARE the boss of him, and you will probably have to suffer through some fits while he sits on a time out spot, but once he sees that you will not give in, even if he has a fit, eventually he will see that you mean business. So what if he has a fit? He, and you, will get over it, and you will be helping him learn about life. He's old enough to be taught that if out in public and he has a fit, there will be prompt consequences (like removal of items and sitting in time-out chair at home, as long as you are there right away) You just have to remind him before you go into a store, for example, of what kind of behavior you expect, what purchases will be made, what will not. To try and make it a more positive experience, let him pick out some of the items you were going to buy anyway, like which kinds of fruit, which kinds of snack items or juice, whatever. Good luck, I recommend Super Nanny shows for general advice. Don't be afraid to have him get mad at you. He'll get over it and you will end up with a better relationship in the long run.