You may feel that it is possible to prevent rebellions by assuring that all of your children are treated with perfect equality. Unfortunately, this is not the case.

Each child must be treated according to his own needs. A fundamental maxim in Jewish education - חנוך לנער על פי דרכו - educate each child according to his own needs - recognizes the individuality of each person.

Each child in a well-run family should understand this anti-socialistic principle. Thus, a child need not receive a raise in allowance when a sibling receives it. Each child must learn that circumstances (but not favoritism or bias) dictate your actions.

Children who are raised according to this guideline often realize that they do not have the right or permission to rebel or carry out anti-social activities because a sibling does so. This fundamental understanding, combined with good parenting, may reduce their experimentation to a minimum.

Furthermore, parents who devote sufficient time on a daily basis, to disussions of important issues with each child may be able to minimize the intensity or frequency of these problems.