When it comes to raising children, I honestly don't think there is one particular method that works for every child ,if there is one thing I have come to realize, it is that children are very different from one another, what works perfectly for one child may completely fail with another, that is why I don't believe you can rely on just one method, whether it is punishment alone or rewards alone.
For children, you can't do just one method, you have to try different methods and see which one works better for that particular child, It is really as simple as that, there are children who are naturally calm, you can simply call them, explain what they did wrong, and they will genuinely understand, you do not need to shout, threaten, or punish them before they correct themselvee, those kinds of children are usually willing to listen and take correction without much drama.
Then there are other children who are completely different, you can explain, you can beg, You can even raise your voice, sometimes, they still won't listen, even when you punish them, they may only stop because they are afraid of the punishment, not necessarily because they understand why what they did was wrong.
That is something I have come to realize with children, no two children are exactly the same.
That is why I think parents and guardians need a lot of patience,sometimes we are too quick to compare one child to another without remembering that they all have different personalities, the same approach cannot always produce the same result, so personally, I believe both punishment and rewards have their place, If a child genuinely deserves praise or a reward for doing something good, then why not?
Children also need encouragement, when they know that good behaviour is appreciated, it motivates them to keep doing the right thing, the reward doesn't even have to be something expensive, sometimes simple words like, (Well done, or I'm proud of you,) can mean a lot to a child.
At the same time, I don't think children should grow up believing there are no consequences for bad behaviour, If they deserve punishment, then they should understand the consequences of their actions, of course, I don't mean harsh or abusive punishment, I simply mean appropriate discipline that teaches them a lesson instead of making them afraid, the goal should never be to hurt the child.
The goal should be to help them become better, I also think consistency is very important, It can become confusing for a child if today you reward a certain behaviour and tomorrow you ignore it, or if one day you punish something and the next day you laugh about it, children learn better when expectations are clear and consistent.
At the end of the day I do not think this is a question of choosing punishment over rewards or rewards over punishment, I believe both punishment and rewards can work when they are used wisely and at the time, the important thing is understanding the child in front of you.
Just be patient enough to learn what works for them, then guide them with love, correct them when it is necessary, celebrate them when they do well.
Because every child is different and also raising children is not about following one fixed formula, It is just about finding the method that helps each child grow into a better version of themselves.
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