The National Children's Advocacy Center is a No Hit Zone.
In this zone:
- No adult shall hit child .
- No child shall hit a child.
- No adult shall hit another adult.
- No child shall hit an adult.
Harvard Medical School found that kids who are spanked just once a month had 14-19% smaller brains in the decision-making area.
These were children who remembered being spanked at least 12 times a year and once with a belt, paddle or brush, but were not injured or spanked in anger.
Hitting is strongly connected with:
- Low self-esteem
- Lower IQ
- Health problems
- Childhood aggression
What can I do instead?
- Ask for help
- Distract your child
- Give choices
- Stay calm
- Take 3 deep breaths
- Praise good behavior
- Talk about how your child is feeling
- Offer comfort
Instead of spanking, we work with parents to find more effective ways to address problematic behavior. Download this tip sheet for age appropriate approaches to various disciplinary issues.
