Welcome to the Wire Differently podcast where we chat all about how to best support exceptional children.

I'm your host, Holly Blanc Moses, the mom psychologist who gets it.

Have you ever seen those cool family rule plaques in people's houses?

They often have words like be kind,

laugh, be happy, clean up after yourself. They are really cute. My mom actually has one,

but they're not the best rules when it comes to increasing or decreasing behavior for differently wired kids. And here's why.

They often react impulsively, have big emotions, and show pretty significant social differences.

So when parents and professionals are developing rules, it's a good idea to take into consideration

the following nine tips. You are going to love this.

We're going to jump right in and that way you can know how to make rules much more effective.

Okay, number one tip. Rules have to be specific.

The behavior has to have a very clear beginning and a very clear end.

So it's easy for anyone to be able to say, yes, I just saw it, and yes, I just saw it.

Stop.

A clear specific rule leads to no guessing.

Specific rules cut down on frustration, confusion, anxiety, and inconsistency.

All so, so important.

Tip number two.

A great way to identify behavior that might need a rule is to ask

yourself some questions. Is this behavior getting in the way of my child, client, or student

leading a full life? For example, does it get in the way of learning or making friends?

Let's look at some specific examples.

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