What can parents do when siblings yell and fight?

Hi! How are you? Welcome to my column, "From Mom to Multitasker," in Revista Femenina. I'm Andie, and I'm back again to share my experience with homeschooling. I hope you're ready—this month's topic is super interesting!

Are you ready? Because I am…

I have two sisters, each with a very different personality from mine, and unfortunately, I don't have a perfect relationship with them, nor vice versa. The best way we "get along" is when we've been separated and there's a lot of distance between us. I only have memories from my childhood when my sister and I were very close, partners in crime when it came to playing, mischief, buying toys, and everything else.

I don't have the chance to laugh about the things that happened when we were children because our friendship and close bond faded over time. My mom focused us on competition, on being better than each other… She even created rivalry by comparing us. I've even tried to rekindle that sisterhood, but sadly, the relationship was never nurtured, and although I've tried to reach out to them, it's nearly impossible.

Siblings fight over everything, and when I say everything, I mean EVERYTHING!!! The biggest piece of chocolate, the toy the other sibling is playing with (which just happens to be the most fun one), their place at the table, in the car... Any reason is enough to start a fight. In other words, kids fight over everything and nothing. I know you're laughing because you saw it happen in your own childhood.

To a certain extent, some parents manage to control and bring order to the situation, but when the conflict repeats itself over and over, day after day, no amount of control yields a positive result. This leads parents to wonder if this situation is normal, if it's just a phase, or what they're doing wrong. If your children fight, don't worry, it's perfectly normal. It's part of their learning process.

Fighting can be just a phase or become a family habit; it largely depends on us as parents. Fighting allows each child to assert their identity in front of their siblings. If a child yells, argues, insults, gets angry, and clearly states what they want and don't want, they are making themselves heard, so pay attention.

By: Andie Klingemberger