There's no denying that kids will lie at some point or another. While parents might not always be able to tell when they're doing it, there is a simple strategy that can get kids to become more honest.

This tip by author Eric Barker is based on findings from NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children, which claim that young children tend to lie simply because they want to please or make their parents happy.

With that in mind, the first strategy to coax the truth out of them is to tell them you'll be really happy if they tell you the truth:
What really works is to tell the child, "I will not be upset with you if you peeked, and if you tell the truth, I will be really happy." This is an offer of both immunity and a clear route back to good standing. Talwar explained this latest finding: "Young kids are lying to make you happy—trying to please you." So telling kids that the truth will make a parent happy challenges the kid's original thought that hearing good news—not the truth—is what will please the parent.
From there, you can cut down on the lying by 25 percent by saying: "I'm about to ask you a question. But before I do that, will you promise to tell the truth?" It might not be foolproof, but at least it's a start.

For more parenting tips and tricks, read the full post here