When she was about 3 years old, my daughter had her first tantrum. I don't even remember why, but she was on her back in the middle of the kitchen floor kicking her feet and screaming. Having seen other parents handle tantrums by acting as crazy as their kids and just making the incident worse, I decided on a different approach. I calmly picked her up and deposited her on her bedroom floor. Before closing the door I told her she could leave her room only when she was finished having her tantrum. It didn't take long for her to emerge from her room with a much better attitude.

About a week later she tried it again, and I repeated what I did. Seeing that I meant business and would not give in to her drama, she never had another tantrum.

Cecile