Swearing Like A Sailor: 10 Tips to Help You Deal With Your Child’s Swearing

There are many parents who keep a constant watch on what comes from their children’s mouths. Some people curse from time to time while others curse like a sailor. No matter what category you go into, when your child curses, it’s never a fun experience.

Regardless of how you find your child’s cursing (funny or horrendous), you certainly don’t want your child to say these kinds of words at the wrong time. Most parents are in agreement that swearing is a bad habit to have; something they seriously don’t want their child to develop. With that in mind, what can you do if you hear your child begin cursing?

10 Tips To Help You Deal With Your Child’s Swearing

1 – Stay Calm

Believe it or not, overacting to your child’s swearing will actually reinforce it. He/she may use it over and over just to get attention. He/she may decide that the word is good to use when they want to aggravate you too.

2 – Don’t Laugh

It can be difficult to do but try not laughing. You may find it a bit amusing but laughing only reinforces the child’s behavior. He/she may think, since you find it funny, to use the word when he/she wants to make you laugh.

3 – Don’t Get Upset/Angry

You don’t want to confront your child about the swearing when he/she is angry and/or upset. This tends to add more fuel to the fire. Instead, work through the issue going on and then discuss the swearing when things are calmer.

4 – Watch Your Mouth

One way to keep kids from cursing early on is to not do it yourself. Remember that kids will pick up their habits from home and, if you use them on a regular basis, you can be sure that they’ll think cursing is okay to do.

5 – Ignore the Language

Many young children who hear these words will often mimic them. Rather than scolding them, as they don’t know any better, ignore it. By doing this, they’re likely not to say it again.

6 – Explain the Word

If the child using them has language skills, then all you need to do is simply explain why they should not use the word. By giving them this explanation, they’ll understand it and are not likely to use it again.

7 – Grounding and Taking Away Privileges

When your children are older and are using swear-words, you may have to resort to disciplining them. Their age and circumstances will often spell out what kind of punishment they will have including time outs, groundings, privileges suspended, etc.

8 – How Word Is Used

Consider how the word was used. The punishment you give out should fit the crime that took place. Did the child call someone a bad name or did they hurt themselves?

9 – Apologize

If you let a curse word past your lips, make sure you apologize. When you do this, you’ll set a good example for your child.

10 – Give Them Alternatives to Swear Words

Your child doesn’t have to use swear words to get their point across. Instead, give the child the option to use words that are not so offensive or are made up ones.

There are very few kids making it through their childhood without uttering one single swear word today. However, if you note that your child is using the language, make sure that he/she understands that the words are not going to be tolerated. Thus, your child is less likely to develop the potty mouth habit.