From The Sampson Independent

Harass a hornet, and you will get stung. Walk on thin ice and you will fall in. Drive too fast and you will cause blue lights to appear.

Sometimes, because the result is delayed, a consequence is not so obvious. Play among shiny, three-leaf plants and quite a while later you will itch all over. Keep on smoking and … These delayed consequences are not as effective at changing our behavior as a bee sting, a cold water drenching, or flashing blue lights.

We all live in a world where every action we take has its consequences. The Eastern concept of “Karma” claims you do not get away with anything. The problem is that we don’t always make the connection between what we did and what we got.

Parents often apply consequences to their children’s behavior as they try to steer them in the right direction. If your child comes in past curfew on Friday night, a spanking is an illogical consequence. Having to stay home on Saturday night as punishment for missing curfew on Friday night may not be immediate, but it is a logical consequence: the punishment fits the crime.

Spanking your child because he hit his little brother might seem like a logical consequence, but it is a flawed one because it also teaches the lesson that hitting is allowed if you are more powerful. However, if one child hits another and then the assaulted peer strikes back, there may be a valuable lesson taught to the child who started it: “People who live in glass houses should not throw stones.”

Suspending a child from school for skipping classes may seem like a logical consequence, except that usually it rewards the truant perpetrator with a present, not a punishment. Having to stay after school for skipping classes is a more logical consequence especially if there is make-up homework assigned covering all of the missed class work.

There are many naturally occurring, logical consequences that you can employ to teach your child responsibility and proper social conduct. “If you cannot control your temper, I won’t be able to continue this conversation.” “If you break his toy, you will have to buy him another one with your own money.”

The concept of community service used in our courts is a more logical and constructive consequence than rotting in a jail cell along with an entourage of poor role models. Through community service an offender can pay back society for the harm he or she has caused. A similar principle can be employed at home: If one family member harms or inconveniences another, what can he/she do to make it up: to fix the wrongdoing?

Look for the logical and, if possible, prompt consequence to every misdeed, one related to the wrongful act. Try to have each consequence provide a lesson that will lead to more compassionate and considerate behavior in the future.