Chances are one day, if it hasnāt happened already, your precious little love bug is going to haul off and hit someone. It might even be you.
All of a sudden your delightful child has become a boxer in training. Don’t be too surprised when it happens. It’s normal and will happen with most toddlers.
Hereās how to stop your toddler from hitting.
7 Tips for How to Stop Your Toddler From Hitting
1- Donāt make it a game.
Almost all toddlers hit.
They donāt have the communication tools they need to express themselves, and eventually frustration or even curiosity will turn into a hit. When they hit someone, whether it is an adult or a child, immediate action is required.
Itās important to let your child know that hitting isnāt allowed.
Do not laugh, smirk or give your child any attention for the behavior other than to let them know hitting isnāt okay. When you give them too much attention for the behavior – either positive or negative, theyāre more likely to repeat the offense.
They repeat the behavior partly because they received attention for it, and partly to test and see if theyāll receive the same reaction a second time.
2- Donāt hit them back.
Hitting them back actually reinforces the hitting and aggressive behavior. Youāll end up with a child that hits consistently to get what they want.
Conversely, could your toddler be picking up their aggressive habits from you? Maybe you don’t haul off and hit them, but how do you handle situations? Is your anger reigned in or do you let it all out?
3- Provide your child with other ways to communicate.
One of the primary causes for hitting is that a toddler lacks the communication skills to get what they need. They may hit for fun or out of anger. Itās not necessarily an act of aggression. Help your child learn new ways to ask for what they want. If, for example, they want to play with a child, teach them the way to ask. Maybe instead of hitting they can give the child a toy.
Similar strategies were discussed with how to handle stubborn toddlers.
4- Recognize the signs.
Does your child hit when theyāre tired, frustrated, excited or bored? Pay attention to their behavior and emotions when the hitting incidences occur. Youāll be able to help manage the hitting better if you understand when and why it occurs. Sometimes hitting is part of a tantrum, try to figure out what could have triggered the tantrum in the first place.
5- Navigate hitting situations with care.
Be on high alert when youāre in a situation where your child may hit. For example, if you take them to a play group once a week and they generally hit other children, then itās time to stick close to them and prevent any hitting. If youāre able to catch their hand as theyāre getting ready to hit, you can teach them quickly that itās not acceptable.
6- What about punishment?
Each parent has their own method for discipline. Time outs are often successful and you can also try to redirect them from the situation. Itās also important to make sure the child makes amends to the person they hit.
Learning to apologize is a good skill. Additionally, it helps your toddler learn to empathize. Empathy is a skill that wonāt come until later, but itās never too soon to demonstrate good behavior.
Use this moment as an opportunity to teach appropriate behavior. Try one of these 15 ways to manage aggressive behavior in toddlers.
And believe it or not, it is possible to discipline your toddler. And yes, you can discipline your toddler without yelling.
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7- Remove your child from the situation.
If your toddler is just being downright defiant and the no hitting message isnāt getting through, it may be time to remove them from the situation. This is particularly important if theyāre hitting other children.
If a short time out doesnāt work, then you can stop taking them to play group until theyāve learned to get their hitting habit under control.
Toddlers hit; itās often part of their development.
That doesnāt mean itās acceptable and it doesn’t mean that it will last forever. Set firm ground rules, teach proper behaviors and have patience. It wonāt be the first time your child behaves in an inappropriate manner.
Start setting the foundation now.
Kori
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Excellent, Kori. I try to catch my grand baby’s hand. I always say no! in a sharp tone. Then I say, “We don’t hit. That hurts.”
Here from Inspire Me Monday.
[…] How to stop your toddler from hitting — Kori at Home […]
My kid’s didn’t hit too much but they loved to throw things when they were mad. We are still working on that š
[…] more about how to get kids to stop hittingĀ from Kori at […]
Such great tips! My toddler is going through this phase right now!