Anonymous wrote:Treating people respectfully is non-negotiable. I'd be more firm. If screen time is the currency, then disrespectful behavior = no screen time for the day. No earning it back. One discussion to explain that he may not treat people, including you, with such disrespect. If he disagrees with you, he is free to express that in a respectful manner, but rolling his eyes and sticking out his tongue are not okay. Then, when he does it, you say "no screens today," and otherwise completely ignore him. You'll talk to him when he behaves with respect.
And frankly, when my kid is disrespectful to me, I stop doing her favors. She gets all her basic needs met, and I remain polite (this is not the silent treatment), but I'm very clear that I'm not going to go out of my way to do nice things for someone who isn't nice to me. Also, if she's asked me for something and treats me disrespectfully, the answer is automatically no, even if I might otherwise have said yes.
I'm with this PP. Why is it so bad to be firm? How about a simple raised voice truth "Knock it off! You're behaving like a disrespectful jerk and I'm not dealing with it anymore. Plant yourself (somewhere where there is nothing to do) until you can behave like someone we want to be around."
We coddle and protect our kids' feelings instead of being upfront and honest. Sometimes "Stop it now" rather than "Don't you feel that is inappropriate?" cuts to the heart of things.