These helpful hints will help you increase the effectiveness of an often used, yet misunderstood, discipline technique.

1. Choose time-out guidelines.
   
2. Explain time-out to your child.
   
3. Use time-out every time a problem behavior occurs.
   
4. Be specific and brief when you explain why your child must go to time-out.
   
5. Do not talk to or look at your child during time-out.
   
6. If your guidelines require your child to sit in a chair, you need to return him or her to the chair, without talking, if your child gets up too soon.
   
7. Your child must be calm and quiet in order to get out of time-out.
   
8. Your child must answer yes politely when you ask, "Would you like to get up?"
   
9. If your child is in time-out because he or she did not follow an instruction, give your child another chance after time-out is over.
   
10. Catch'em being good.