Behavior

This post was submitted by Carol Trillia, a Developmental Specialist with Davis Early Intervention

A cute habit can turn into a challenging behavior in the future…

For example it is cute for a baby to have a special blanket,  but not a toddler dragging a king size blanket all over the Mall! A small cuddly is much better…

Another example is bringing your child to bed at night, it is sweet when they are tiny but when they become bed hogs it is not fun…

Breaking an annoying habit is much harder, than not starting one in the first place…

Where I am going with this is all children thrive on boundaries, it makes them feel loved and secure…  A child without any boundaries feels just as unloved as an abused child…

When they are little we tend to think some behaviors are so cute and very funny... However, cute or not cute, it is important to establish "NO" since cute today can be dangerous, annoying and even embarrassing  tomorrow.

The beauty of toddlers is they have an incredibly short attention span! So they are  very easy to re-direct. Humor is wonderful!

Example: toddler grabs  something , it is easy to just say,  " that  is mommy's, here is your…" and give them an immediate replacement,  be convincing and funny!   

Children don't know that the knick-knack came from great grandma…  Toddlers are curious and want to explore! So setting up a safe environment is important.

It is also important to set boundaries, "No is No!" and will always be "no"  as children grow up they will have to comply with more and more boundaries , so it makes it easier for a child to learn from a young  age rather than all of a sudden have a very rude awakening in  nursery school, pre-school,  or even school, where rules and expectations are set pretty much in stone!

Children, like adults, like to feel in control of their world, so give them lots of control!

Give choices during the day "do you want the red cup,  or the green cup!", "do you want juice or milk", "do you want Cheerios or Rice Crispies!"   

Every time they make a simple choice you earn points! When you need your child to comply with something important you can cash in your points.

You: "we need to go to bed" ,  toddler "no, go bed", You, "You chose the red cup, the Chereos and the milk, so  now it is mommy's turn to choose!" and you cash in!

Transitions are also hard for toddlers! So the five minute rule is wonderful

You, " we will be going to bed in five minutes", give a little time (most toddlers don't wear watches!) then "we will go to bed in three minutes, let's start to put your toys away…!" then "Oh! Oh! one more minute! hurry! hurry! time is almost up!  then,  "Time is up!  time to go to bed"  your toddler will be much happier and ready to transition to a new activity,  since he/she has had time to process and get  ready… 

I hope these simple strategies help you and your toddler!

Carol Trillia