From April 2019, the Toddler Morning Program will only be available for children aged 18 months-27 months (2 years 3 months).
Thank you for your understanding.
Aggressive Toddlers
Why are toddlers aggressive?
It's the moment that all parents dread - their sweet and innocent child suddenly decides that hitting, scratching or biting someone else is their new favorite thing to do.
While it can be a shock to you and others involved, aggressive behavior is a natural part of your toddler's development. Emerging
language skills, a fierce desire to become independent,
and undeveloped impulse control all make children this age prime candidates for
getting physical.
"Some degree of hitting and biting is
completely normal for a toddler," says Nadine Block, founder of the Center
for Effective Discipline in Columbus, Ohio.
That doesn't mean you should ignore it, of
course. Make sure your toddler knows that aggressive behavior is unacceptable,
and show them other ways to express their feelings.
Keep your cool. Yelling, hitting, or telling your child
he's bad won't get him to make positive changes to his behavior – you'll just
get him more riled up and give him examples of new things to try. But showing
him you can control your temper helps him learn to control his.
Set clear limits. Respond immediately whenever your
toddler is aggressive. Remove her from the situation for a brief time-out (just
a minute or two is enough). This gives her time to cool down, and after a while
she'll connect her behavior with the consequence and figure out that if she
hits or bites, she ends up out of the action.
Reinforce good behavior. Rather than giving your child attention
only when he's misbehaving, try to catch him being good. When he asks to have a
turn on the swing instead of pushing another child out of the way, for example,
praise him for verbalizing his desires. Reinforce good behavior with an offer
to push his swing or play together. In time, he'll realize how powerful his
words are.
Give logical consequences. If your child gets into the ball pit at
the indoor play center and starts throwing the balls at other kids, take her
out immediately. As you sit down with her and watch the other kids play,
explain that she can go back in when she's ready to join the fun without
hurting other children.
Avoid lecturing or trying to reason with your
toddler: It's likely she isn't capable yet of imagining herself in another
child's place or changing her behavior based on verbal reasoning. But she can
understand consequences.
Discipline consistently. As much as possible, respond to each
episode the same way each time. Your predictable response sets up a pattern
that your child eventually learns to recognize and expect. Eventually it'll
sink in that if he misbehaves, there will be consequences.
Teach alternatives. Wait until your toddler has settled
down, then calmly and gently review what happened. Ask her if she can explain
what triggered her outburst.
Emphasize (briefly!) that it's natural to have
angry feelings but it's not okay to show them by hitting, kicking, or biting.
Encourage her to find a more effective way of responding, like using words to
express herself or asking for help from an adult.
Encourage her to apologize after
she lashes out at someone. Her apology may be insincere at first, but the
lesson will sink in eventually.
Be mindful of screen time. Cartoons, digital games, and other media
designed for young children can be filled with shouting, threats, even shoving
and hitting. Several studies suggest excessive screen time could
contribute to children's behavior problems as they grow. Some experts are concerned
that screen use interferes with children's social and emotional development as
well.
The American Academy of Pediatrics advises
against TV and other screens (including phones, computers, and tablets) until
children are at least 18 months old (except for brief video chats with adults).
If your child is at least 18 months old, limit
his screen time to
no more than an hour a day, and choose high-quality, age-appropriate media,
especially if he seems prone to aggressive behavior. Watch shows with him, and
check in on him when he's playing a game (or play it with him).
Discuss how characters work out conflicts and
brainstorm better ways to resolve them. Don't keep the TV on in the background,
and be sure not to expose him to more mature content for older viewers.
Keep your toddler active. You might find that when your toddler
doesn't get a chance to burn off her abundant energy, she's a terror at home.
If your child is high-spirited,
give her plenty of unstructured time, preferably outdoors, to let off steam.
Get help if you need it. Sometimes a child's aggression is more
than a parent can handle. Talk to your child's doctor if:
·
Your child is unusually aggressive for more than a few weeks.
·
He seems to frighten or upset other children.
·
He attacks adults.
·
Your efforts to curb his behavior have little effect.
Together you can determine the source of the
behavior problem and help your child overcome it. A doctor can also recommend a
counselor or child psychologist if necessary.
What is Imagine's policy towards aggressive behavior?
At Imagine, it is not unusual to have incidents of aggressive behavior between toddler aged friends. We accept that this is a part of children's development as they try to express their feelings, control their instincts and learn to use words.
For each incident that occurs, we try to use it as a learning opportunity. For example, "Sam" bit "Lucy" on her hand when Lucy was playing with some blocks. As a teacher attends to Lucy, another teacher would try to find out why Sam behaved that way. It may be hard for Sam to talk, but it is likely that he can understand, so we can ask different reasons for why he may have bitten her, for example:
"Did you want to play with Lucy?"
"Did you want to play with the blocks by yourself?"
"Did Lucy break your tower?"
"Are you feeling angry about (something that happened before)?"
Being aware of the current environment and the child's condition will often help teachers guess what may have been the reason for the incident.
After the reason is known, it gives us the chance to teach the child how to act next time.
⇒ Learn how to say "Can I play?"
⇒ Learn how to ask for something you want ("Can I have some blocks?")
⇒ Learn how to express anger verbally ("No!", "Stop!", "I don't like ___", "I feel sad/angry when_____")
⇒ Learn how to "cool down" (do something relaxing, receive positive attention from a teacher, move away from the "bad feeling")
Whenever possible, teachers will attempt to intervene to stop one child physically harming another child, however these incidents often happen very fast and with little to no warning.
In cases where such an incident does occur, we will inform the parents of the children involved and let them know of the possible reason for the incident and how we followed up. We also want to support parents, as it is often a stressful time (especially for the parents of the child that displays the aggressive behavior) and let them know it is a normal behavior for toddler aged children that they will grow out of. For the parents of the child that was on the receiving end of the aggressive behavior, we ask that they show understanding towards the situation and show patience, especially if it happens again.
For each incident that occurs, we try to use it as a learning opportunity. For example, "Sam" bit "Lucy" on her hand when Lucy was playing with some blocks. As a teacher attends to Lucy, another teacher would try to find out why Sam behaved that way. It may be hard for Sam to talk, but it is likely that he can understand, so we can ask different reasons for why he may have bitten her, for example:
"Did you want to play with Lucy?"
"Did you want to play with the blocks by yourself?"
"Did Lucy break your tower?"
"Are you feeling angry about (something that happened before)?"
Being aware of the current environment and the child's condition will often help teachers guess what may have been the reason for the incident.
After the reason is known, it gives us the chance to teach the child how to act next time.
⇒ Learn how to say "Can I play?"
⇒ Learn how to ask for something you want ("Can I have some blocks?")
⇒ Learn how to express anger verbally ("No!", "Stop!", "I don't like ___", "I feel sad/angry when_____")
⇒ Learn how to "cool down" (do something relaxing, receive positive attention from a teacher, move away from the "bad feeling")
Whenever possible, teachers will attempt to intervene to stop one child physically harming another child, however these incidents often happen very fast and with little to no warning.
In cases where such an incident does occur, we will inform the parents of the children involved and let them know of the possible reason for the incident and how we followed up. We also want to support parents, as it is often a stressful time (especially for the parents of the child that displays the aggressive behavior) and let them know it is a normal behavior for toddler aged children that they will grow out of. For the parents of the child that was on the receiving end of the aggressive behavior, we ask that they show understanding towards the situation and show patience, especially if it happens again.
Learning how to Draw and Write
From around 18 months old (or
sometimes earlier), children can begin to develop their drawing and writing
skills.
At Imagine, we recognize that
children go through different stages of development in their drawing and
writing. Every stage is important, as it lays the foundation for the next
stage.
These stages (outlined below), can be read about in more detail in an excellent article from zerotothree.org.
These stages (outlined below), can be read about in more detail in an excellent article from zerotothree.org.
Stage 1: Random Scribbling (15
months to 2½ years)
Stage 2: Controlled Scribbling
(2 years to 3 years)
Stage 3: Lines and Patterns (2½
years to 3½ years)
Stage 4: Pictures of Objects or
People (3 years to 5 years)
Stage 5: Letter and Word
Practice (3 to 5 years)
A common trap that parents fall into, is comparing their child's writing skills with the skills of peers. If they feel their child's writing is not as good, they often try to give them more challenging writing tasks that the child simply is not ready for. This can lead to the child missing crucial developmental stages, suffering from low self-esteem, and create a resentment towards writing. For that reason, we do not recommend rushing your child to learn how to write letters if they have not yet mastered drawing straight lines or circles.
Instead, we should support our child at whatever stage they are currently at, even if it is below the stages of their peers. Through making writing and drawing fun, children can begin to develop a love for their work and a desire to improve by themselves!
Frisbee Play
Frisbee's are a timeless classic, whether at the park or on the beach, a Frisbee is always a fun way to pass the time away!
For a child, throwing a Frisbee can be a rewarding experience, as they move from the frustrations of not being able to throw it properly, to the excitement of seeing it fly through the air!
At Imagine, we enjoy playing with soft Frisbees that don't hurt if they hit you, but can still fly well with their padded edges. We recommend the Dodgebee, which comes in different sizes.
Children from around 5 years old begin to possess the motor skills and coordination to be able to throw a Frisbee properly (with a backhand throw). When teaching them, first show the correct grip, with the thumb on top of the Frisbee and the fingers holding the underside.
If using the right hand to throw, bring the Frisbee across to the left side of the chest and bend wrist in. Then swing arm back across to the right side, releasing the Frisbee with a straight wrist towards the target.
With a little practice, your child will soon be able to throw a smooth, and hopefully straight, Frisbee.
Then you can enjoy some games!
Frisbee Games
For a child, throwing a Frisbee can be a rewarding experience, as they move from the frustrations of not being able to throw it properly, to the excitement of seeing it fly through the air!
At Imagine, we enjoy playing with soft Frisbees that don't hurt if they hit you, but can still fly well with their padded edges. We recommend the Dodgebee, which comes in different sizes.
Children from around 5 years old begin to possess the motor skills and coordination to be able to throw a Frisbee properly (with a backhand throw). When teaching them, first show the correct grip, with the thumb on top of the Frisbee and the fingers holding the underside.
If using the right hand to throw, bring the Frisbee across to the left side of the chest and bend wrist in. Then swing arm back across to the right side, releasing the Frisbee with a straight wrist towards the target.
With a little practice, your child will soon be able to throw a smooth, and hopefully straight, Frisbee.
Then you can enjoy some games!
Frisbee Games
- Catch - The most simple game. Just enjoy throwing in a pair or group. For a challenge you can try to reach a target number of successful catches.
- Frisbee Golf - Set up a target (a hula-hoop works well), and see how many throws it takes to reach or hit the target.
- Frisbee tag - This is one of the favorite games of the preschool class (best played in a group of four or more. More players=more fun). Mark out a playing area (we usually do a circle of about 10-15 meters diameter) and choose who will be starting with the Frisbee. The starter must try to hit the other people with the Frisbee (we don't recommend playing this with a hard Frisbee!). If someone gets hit by the Frisbee or runs outside the playing area, they change to the Frisbee team and can work together to try and hit more people. The players in the Frisbee team cannot move when holding the Frisbee so they should work together to pass it to each other. The last person left is the winner!
We hope you can enjoy these Frisbee games together!
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