How do I stop tattling?

Question

I have 3 children

and 2 of them 7 and 6

are ALWAYS tattling

on eachother

this is so fustrating

most of the time it is

petty stuff...I've tried everything

ANY ADVICE..

PLEASE STAR if you

think this could help someone else

thanks!!

Answer 1

we have 6 kids all together (some step children in there so they are not with us all the time)  when we are all together the tattling get out of control.  we had a family meeting and explained to the kids that this behavior was not acceptable and telling on one another BC they are angry is not OK and not a successful way to deal with their emotions and it needed to be stopped.  we told them that coming to us and letting us know when someone was doing something that would A) hurt someone B) hurt themselves C) destroy something.  know when they come to us to tattle we ask.....is anyone bleeding?.. are you bleeding? ..is anything broke or getting broke?  if it is a no to all three then they have to suffer a consequence (usually the corner for age appropriate minutes BC its the least liked punishment) then we talk to that child one on one letting them know that it is OK to come to us about anything but it is not OK to tattle just for the sake you want to get someone into trouble.  then depending on the tattled offense we sometimes encourage the children to talk to each other and figure out with their words why the offense bother them enough to want to get the other into trouble.  this has actually been working very well and we have noticed that the kids are talking things out more and compromising alot more without all the tattling. hope this helps :)  good luck!

Answer 2

Give a talk to all of them about when it's right to tattle and when it's the wrong time to tattle.

Answer 3

Tell your kids that tattling is when your goal is to get someone in trouble, and that's not okay.  Tell them that "telling" is when you're trying to keep someone out of trouble (from getting hurt, for example), and that is okay if it's something they can't handle on their own.

Then when they come to say that Suzie's not taking turns, ask them whether they're trying to get someone into or out of trouble.

Also, be sure to discipline your kids outside the hearing of the other kids, so the other kids aren't getting a thrill from listening to a sibling get in trouble.

Answer 4

tell them that tattling isn't cool and that mommy does not want to hear anymore tattling. if it continues, just act like you are ignoring it. sometimes you have to play mind games with kids. if you show no interest they will probably stop.

Answer 5

Tell them to only "report" a big problem in a mature way. Then reward them. If they tattle on something petty then ask them if they want to sit in the corner if they're acting like a baby, whining. Warn them that they'll spend some time in the corner to think about the stress they're giving mommy.

But, they do need to learn a reporting technique for problems that happen in school.  When I told my son at age 7 to stop tattling on the neighbors, I was wrong, he was really being picked on.  You don't want your kids to learn to be victims. So, you can't tell them to just stop it.  I know it's frustrating, but help them change the way they tattle to a less annoying reporting way.

If they have problems at school with bullies, in the future, then maybe the teachers will listen to their complaints when it's done maturely.

Answer 6

I know exactly what you are going thru...my 6 & 7 year old do the same thing...sometimes I just ignore them because they are tattling on the same thing over and over again.  I have also told them to stop tattling on the same small things...I only want to know if they have done something really bad...but then when I tell them that they think everything that the other one is doing is bad!

Answer 7

Tattling, while aggravating, is completly normal.  Children do it to get attention, as revenge, or to try to get back at one another for somethig without using physical force.  Often times this stems from jealousy.

I hate to say it but this can start when a child is still a toddler up into their teens, but eventually most kids will stop and become more concerned with their own lives.

I wouldnt get mad at them, or tell them to stop because they are coming to you, the authority figure, for help and security.  You dont want to discourage your kids from coming to you for help or information!

I would encourage them to try to work out their own problems and come to you when necessary.  This will help them problem solve and communicate.  And if they come to you and you need to address the problem - address them both (and not just the illeged trouble maker) since in an arguement or disagreement there are two that we involved, so both children should be addressed.

Good luck and be patient.  Babycenter has a good section on tattling too if you want to refer to that - it helps!!

Answer 8

Siblings will tattle on each other..but if you want them to stop...try punishing them. If one tells on the other...make them both lose like something like one hour of tv..or no desert. I think that might make them stop. I hope this helped.

-Tara