Dealing with hitting
Children need to learn acceptable ways to communicate. Most of their learning is done by copying their parents, so model the behaviour you want your child to learn.
Things to try
- Act promptly and calmly. “Stop hitting it hurts.”
- Ask them how they think the problem can be sorted.
- Focus on the person who was hit. Move the hitter away. As a last resort time out can be useful for children over two.
- Have family rules about not hitting that you all agree to.
- When things calm down, talk about the no hitting rule.
Think about
- Children will keep on hitting if it is the only way to get adult attention.
- If adults smack or hit, children learn it’s ok. They’ll copy you.
- Give children lots of love. They need to know you love them even when you don’t like their behaviour.
