What do I do when my 9yr old son throws a tantrum in public?

Ana - posted on 06/17/2012

Embarrass him in public. When we (4 of us) used to act up in public, my mom would just finish the show. We hated this, so we tried to act right.

America3437 - posted on 04/18/2012

Leave him home.

Angie - posted on 02/05/2010

Before you leave home, let him know what you expect of him (good behavior) and what the consequences of not meeting that expectation will be (going home immediately and being sent to his room for the remainder of the day). Make it clear to him that he will ONLY be given a treat while you're out shopping if he is well behaved the entire time.

Brynnen - posted on 02/05/2010

My kids don't act up in the store anymore, but when they were real little, before we even went to the store or out in public, I would tell them what to expect and if they acted appropriately, they would get to do something fun at home. First of all, it teaches them delayed gratification and 2nd they know what to expect. I would ask them what good behavior looks like and have them explain to me what that is. If they did act up, I would tell them that is "1" and leave it at that. If it occurred again, I would say "2" and if it happened a third time we would just get up and leave. We never got to "3". My kids are now 9 and 12 and I still use 1,2,3 and I never get pass 2. YOu must be willing to follow through and be consistent every time, even if it means leaving your full cart of groceries there in the store. The important thing is to stay calm and not show any anger or frustration, they feed off of this and it heightens their energy as well. Good luck.

Kellie - posted on 02/04/2010

I work in retail and i have seen my share of children throwing temper tantrums in the store. Some moms battle with the kids and get really mean and loud, other moms ignore the child and continue to shop, and then there are the moms that leave the store and try again another day. I think it's important to look at things from the child's perspective. when do the tratrums occur? Your son is nine so you can probably explain to him the purpose for the trip. Preparing him ahead of time should ease the stress and when he begins to fuss, remind him of what you talked about. if it's a trip to the grocery store, ask him what he would like and let him pick out a few things, bag the produce, or push the cart. Sometimes kids are just bored with shopping and they would rather be doing other stuff so we moms should be willing to compromise (not bribe). I have a relative who's kids "hate" to go shopping with her but they know if they act up in the store, she'll buy them something. They are 8 and 6. And they do it because it works for them. If all else fails, leave the store and come up with an appropriate punishment.

Jamie - posted on 02/03/2010

firmly tell him to stop and do not give in to him. Give him a punishment when he gets home also. If that does not work what I did when my oldest kept whining and throwing fits was i took him to a place where i knew that their would be people who knew him and very loudly started talking to him in a whinny voice and when he got embarrassed and asked me to stop i threw a tantrum like he did. While he still does it at home some times all i have to do in public is threaten to "act like him" and he straightens up fast. He still has to answer questions from his friend about his mom. I a lot of people I know have done this with the same results.