would you stop piaw piaw games?

[newandlearning]

my dear lil mindee is now into piaw piaw games (simulating gun noises)...

this has never been an issue before but it can sometimes lead to someone
getting hurt.. he uses sticks, drum sticks, lego, duplo, toast :rolleyes: .. you
name it and would happily do this all day... in deed there are occasions when
I think he's just waiting for me to say AGAIN '.. its not very friendly playing that type of game x.. how about we do this?'...

I'm wondering if he's just bored of my resources? so have started to do more
activities with him but sooner or later he's back to this again...

am thinking its a passing phase and just to ignore it and say its okay as long as there's no physical contact with the others...

what do you guys reckon? xx:)

[ORKSIE]

Boys just do make guns out of whatever they can, think it built into them.
I do not allow any guns or gun simulation in my setting.

If a child makes a gun out of something I encourage them to make something else.

When the children are outside they use their fingers to make guns and make the Peow sound. I say " we dont play gun games, Guns are nasty and very dangerous, I dont like them"
and ask them very nicely to change the game, generally they do.

[mushpea]

I do not have guns here but I dont stop them if they make them out of somthing else, It is part of our world today and i feel rather than stop them from playing and making it a taboo subject i would rather let them play it but teach them saftey around using them, I dont mean how to use a gun safely but saying things like ' thats ok to play this game with the stick because its not a realy gun but what would happen if were real and should we use or touch a real gun'
we reguarly go over the woods where my son and a mindee become darth vader and luke skywalker and they do play fight with sticks but i keep a close eye and the know how far they can go, we have rules such as no hitting each other or anyone else and no jabbing at each other with the sticks and it musnt get too rough or i step in, they know that if they go over the top they wont be allowed to play with sticks, mind you the dog normaly grabs the sticks and runs off with them before it gets to rough anyway:laughing:

[Nat78]

I don't have guns in my setting but I don't stop them making them from other toys, duplo, etc. Like above I talk about the saftey aspects and stuff. One thing I do emphasise is that we don't shoot the other people or animals around us. They are a part of life and if used and taught about appropriately hopefully they will learn to give guns respect and treat them and use them in an appropriate mannor in the future. This is a subject I have debated loads with my partner as he has a gun licence for target shooting (clay, pictures, metal targets, etc not live) and he was brought up with guns from around 3 years old as were many of his mates and as our children will be when they are old enough to understand and respect safety issues. It can be a fantastic sport and hobby if regulated and done by the proper channels. I feel children need to learn about such things so they can make informed decisions as they grow. Like with racism, teach and educate so they understand their actions.
I have discussed this matter with parents of children in my care and they are fine with my approach. I would suggest you do the same to gain their opinion.

[nannymcflea]

Boys just do make guns out of whatever they can, think it built into them.
I do not allow any guns or gun simulation in my setting.

If a child makes a gun out of something I encourage them to make something else.

When the children are outside they use their fingers to make guns and make the Peow sound. I say " we dont play gun games, Guns are nasty and very dangerous, I dont like them"
and ask them very nicely to change the game, generally they do.


Me too. "we don't have guns in MY house"...lets them know it's YOUR rules and at home it may different.:thumbsup:

Fantastic discription of the sound by the way.

[Helen Dempster]

I think it's just something boys are born with...my son has never been 'led' to like guns, but from an early age was picking up anything from sticks to sticklebricks, carrots(!) etc and making piaw piaw noises. I don't like guns, esp in this day and age when Tom, Dick and (dirty?) Harry all seem to have them, but his older brother does have some (brought by his dad, my ex!) and so he gets hold of them now and then. It's a tough one - do you ban them in the hope this doesn't make them want them even more, or do you let them play their (at this age) innocent games with them? As regards minding, I don't allow guns at all in my setting.

God...don't I RAMBLE?! :blush: LOL.


H x

[PixiePetal]

We don't play guns indoors at my house, don't have pretend ones at all. Out in the woods if 2 kids play star wars or something and pretend to shoot I enforce the fact that it is only a game and we don't really point dangerous things at people. You are right though that if there are no sticks a finger will sometimes become a gun :rolleyes:

As DH is a farmer with real guns, my kids have grown up and know they are serious - and well locked away!! Mindees don't know this of course but I still prefer to keep the same rules.

[tinynippers]

i'm actually rather happy someone else has brough this up as this is a topic i have always had trouble with (especially with the boys) ive always lived on an RAF camp whislt childminding and there isnt a day that goes by (unless im in the house all day hehe) without walking past someone carrying a gun as lads take turn being on guard to keep everywhere safe and they stand at the main gate on to camp with a gun. so its very hard for me to discourage guns. so just try and teach them in a safe mannor. i think its all you can do really. xxx

[singingcactus]

I don't interfere with play that includes guns, I remember fondly all of us kids playing cowboys and indians, and cops and robbers in the street when I was a little girl.
Add to that all my kids are service kids and telling them that touching/playing with guns is bad and that guns are bad would be telling them that mummy and daddy are bad, and that my DH, and my dad and FIL are bad.
play that includes toy guns or make believe guns has been around forever, and it will be around forever. It's just part of life. Kids like to play the hero and rescue people from the bad guy.

[The Juggler]

as others have said, take them away and they will make their own out of whatever is there. I would encourage him to play the game without pointing objects in other's faces or doing it, if they don't want.

Maybe invest in that shooting range game where they have to aim and hit the toy cans or make him a target to aim at?. However, it's more likely he's looking for pretend play and social aspect. However, if you get a cowboy hat and hobby horse, he might be away.

I think he needs to get it out of his system. I have a mindee who pretend 'sword' fights with anything from a doll to the toy mop.

[sweets]

i have a friend with 4 boys and when they started playing with 'pretend' guns she told them to say that they freezing people rather than killing or shooting them. they used to run around pointing fingers or toys and shouting 'freeze'

[ORKSIE]

Fantastic discription of the sound by the way.
Thank you :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: :thumbsup:

[David Sheppard]

Contrary to the popular belief, their is little real evidence, at all, that allowing boys to play gun, sword fighting or war type games has any adverse effect on them. In fact, there is mounting evidence that preventing them from engaging in this inherent imaginative play actually alienates them from learning and developing. We, as a society, have become visibly more violent in recent history, and this is at a time where these kind of child-like behaviours have been suppressed and ostricised by so many practitioners. Is this a coincidence or a symptom?

Like everything else within our settings, the boys play must have sensible boundaries associated with physical and threatening behaviour towards other children. But, whereas most girls do not have an inclination for these types of imaginative games, most boys do.

I actively encourage my boys (and any girls inclined to join in) to participate in action based imaginative play whether or not it includes the latest star wars light saber or whatever. I also make sure that these 'pretend' games are exactly that. Nobody really gets dead! Just as a dolly with her head pulled off, or completely dismembered, is not actually likely to lead to any hospitalisation for the real babies in the setting!

You will find plenty of practitioners who will readily quote that these activities are harmful to our children - surprisingly, you will also find that very few could point you to any hard evidence to support their strongly felt views.

There are, however, some well researched excellent books and workshops available to support the use of these types of behaviours for boys.

Regards

David Sheppard
(Someone who grew up very much engaged in all things cowboys, soldiers, war, knights of the round table, Robin Hood etc)

[Kelly]

Both my children love playing cowboys and indians, soldiers, infact anything with guns and swords (from lego land), light sabers etc. My husband is in the army, they know dad has a gun and like to simulate him. I always ask parents and would happily stop the boys playing these games if parents were against it. But all my parents have been happy to allow their children to make their own choices.

[singingcactus]

I actively encourage my boys (and any girls inclined to join in) to participate in action based imaginative play whether or not it includes the latest star wars light saber or whatever. I also make sure that these 'pretend' games are exactly that. Nobody really gets dead! Just as a dolly with her head pulled off, or completely dismembered, is not actually likely to lead to any hospitalisation for the real babies in the setting!



HAHA, I remember as a little kid, getting my tiny tears dressed by turning her upside down to get her nappy on. My mum nearly beat me to death, yelling 'Is that how I dressed you when you were a baby! Would you dress a real baby like that! You NEVER hold a baby upside down!' :eek:
I just sat looking at the poxy doll thinking, but it's a hunk of plastic not a baby! (obviously didn't say that out loud though)

Soon went back to pretending to shoot my brothers dead in the street, I didn't get into trouble for that. :laughing: :laughing: Oh and as an aside, I regularly tip the little ones upside down here, they LOVE it lol.

[flora]

We play guns here too.

I am not mad keen on it but being in a farming community we seen guns alot, especially at this time othe year with the shoots about.

As they grow older we address safety and tbh they soon grow out of it.

I have always found the more fuss you make the more they will want to do it .

As long as they are not hurting anybody or being too rough, I would just go with the flow :thumbsup:

[Pipsqueak]

Having 3 boys myself and growing up with many male cousins and neighbours sons the gun/sword thing doesn't bother me. I did once try to discourge it with my own kids - didn't work!
We ensure that its 'play' and it has its boundaries.
Even my female mindee has her peow peow /chaaaaaarrrrgeee moments, just the same as the males enjoy playing teasets and dollies.

I have many happy memories of cowboys and injuns:)