Final answer:
After a child has a temper tantrum, it's key to ignore the behavior, employ a time-out, and reconnect with the child afterward.
Step-by-step explanation:
It is essential to handle a child's temper tantrum with a thoughtful approach. First, it's important to remain calm during and ignore the tantrum as any form of attention could potentially reinforce the behavior. After the tantrum has subsided, employing a technique like a time-out can be effective. The child, such as Sophia in the example provided, is removed from a pleasant activity following the undesirable behavior and placed in a less desirable location for a set period, based on the child's age, to reflect on their behavior. Post-time-out, it's valuable to reconnect with the child through a hug or kind words to enforce that they are still loved and supported, despite the negative behavior.
After addressing the tantrum with a time-out, it is important to teach the child ways to think and act more reasonably and less emotionally. Encouraging positive behaviors and rewarding them when caught doing something good is a more effective and positive reinforcement strategy that shapes better behavioral patterns over time without the drawbacks associated with punishment.