Last year, my daughter’s preschool held a Love and Logic session that I had planned on attending and missed out on. Later I heard about it again and decided to look it up, and am glad that I did.

Love and Logic is just that—raising your children lovingly and logically, without the squabbles, fights, harsh language and hateful words. It trains you to use logical, loving responses to your child’s misbehavior, turning every problem into a learning experience.

When kids cause problems, according to Love and Logic, they should be given the opportunity to have the problems tossed right back at them. This does not mean to bite your child when she bites you, but to let her solve the problems that she can on her own.

The two main rules of Love and Logic are super simple:

1. Set limits without anger, threats, repeated warnings or lectures, and
2. When kids cause problems, hand them back in loving ways.

For example, if your teen wishes to attend two weekend events and your rule is that Sunday is family time, you can provide her with valuable critical thinking skills she can use her whole life by allowing her to choose which event she will attend—and which one she will just have to miss.

According to the Love and Logic Institute, by using their program you can “use words that work right off the tip of your tongue, less stress and more confidence, and respectful and responsible kids.” Hundreds of parents claim the program has helped them work through rough spots, too. It’s not as if you have to pay for the program, either; many schools and libraries carry it—and if they don’t, if you ask they would likely be willing to.

Now I’ve got the Love and Logic book for early childhood reserved at the library (I’m actually third in line on the waiting list!) and am signed up for the newsletter, which delivers weekly tips and tricks for raising your children as well as free articles, audio clips, videos and specials on their program materials.

I would highly recommend Love and Logic for any parent to just check out and see if it works for you. Much of it is common sense, but put together in such an easy, deliverable way, it’s all broken down into useable daily steps that are simple to use and remember.