What do you do if your child steals from a store

Wow! Lack of parenting or what?. I've seen it swing both ways, if the child doesn't know it's wrong they will continue doing it or if they don;t get punished. I don't have kids but I would make them go up to the counter and tell the clerk, and apolgize giving the item back (depending on the age this is younger ages), now if they are older, I would expect some sort of repayment such as helping at the store or hard labour of some sort. I remember years ago we use to have a convenient store in town, my older brother went down and stole some chocolate bar, my mother amde abig scene, made him bring it back, apoogize, and made him do little things around the house, mind you that wasn't the last time he stole, he still does to this day.

Wow! Lack of parenting or what?. I've seen it swing both ways, if the child doesn't know it's wrong they will continue doing it or if they don;t get punished. I don't have kids but I would make them go up to the counter and tell the clerk, and apolgize giving the item back (depending on the age this is younger ages), now if they are older, I would expect some sort of repayment such as helping at the store or hard labour of some sort. I remember years ago we use to have a convenient store in town, my older brother went down and stole some chocolate bar, my mother amde abig scene, made him bring it back, apoogize, and made him do little things around the house, mind you that wasn't the last time he stole, he still does to this day.

If it is his first offense, I will punish his hand for stealing, and then send him to the educational center to learn about proper ethical behavior in the public, deny him the privilege of going outside for a month without adult supervision, a severe warning will be given to him for stealing again, the second time he will be send to the police department for jail time. I will do my best to provide strict parenting to prevent him from becoming a robber or big thief before he grow up by using proper punishment on crime he committed, it will not be tolerated if he steal from other and store.

Mine would lose the privilege of ever coming back to the store with me. I can emphasize with the woman putting the toy back on the shelf because I've seen situations like this before and 9 out 10x its the parent who ends up being embarrassed because the way everyone around here sees it is the parent is at fault for every mistake the kids make. The store manager usually feels sorry for the child because its always assumed the kid is acting out for attention. I'd go to the counter only if its a situation like the stole item wasn't discovered until after we got home.

Hi Poppoppop. It just proves to fact that by the government taking the control out of parents hands by forbiding them to spank their children in fear of going to jail the parents don't much have an ideal of what they can do. Some just plain don't know what or how to do the simple task of bringing up a child. When I was a small child growing up if one of us stole anything mom would have made us take it back to the manager of the stroe and then after we apologized she would take us home and we would be disciplined. I caught my middle daughter stealing a candy bar when she was about 3 or 4 and I did as my mother did I made her take it back in to the store manager and apologize. After we got home she told her dad and he spanked her she never stole anything after that. She to this day won't steal. She thanked me many times for disciplining her when she was a child. Seems like the mother of that child is at a loss at what she can and can't do. I say that a spanking on the bottom don't hurt any child. They need to be taught by the parents what is right and what is wrong. But a lot of parents haven't a clue as to how to raise a child in the right way of living. Who knows maybe they were never taught either. But it says in the bible spare the rod is to spoil a child. Not sure of how it is worded need to look it up. But I think you get the jest of what I mean. I think by this it means that we should spank our children when it is needed. Good post my friend.

Id march them back to the store, and make them give it back, and apologize. Ive seen this before. My sister once stole a candy bar. My dad took her back. Was one of the hardest things for her to do, tell manager she stole it and was sorry.

That is kind of sad for parents. If my child did that, I would talk to him seriously and tell him it is bad to steal from someone. I know he will understand it and don't do it anymore. God Bless

She was indulging him!If I were his mother,I would take it seriously.Ask him to give to the cashier and make an apology right now,and talk to him when we are back home.First of all,I need to ask him about the reason why he did like that.And I would tell him,I get hurt if he does it next time.Try to talk to him in a soft but effective way rather then scolding him,or it will make him to be negative mentally.To be his friend as I can than to be a teacher.

When my daughter was a little younger she stole a candy bar.I ask her why she did it and she could never even give me a reason.Children just sometimes try to see what they can get away with in life. As her mother though this concerned me so I made her take it back to the store clerk and admit to her what she did.The store clerk then felt sorry for my daughter and tried to give her the candy bar anyway which I would not let my daughter accept.This learned my daughter not to take something that did not belong to her.You have got to learn your children or the problem will never go away only get worse.