Tantrums

[scully]

Hi all,

I have been approached by one of my mindees mum's. She explained her little one has started to have regular tantrums at home & have I experienced them. I said no. She has asked what is the best way to deal with them.

I've never experienced them before. I would think the best way would be to either ignore them &/or use the time out step, whilst fixing firm boundaries.

Can anyone please advise if they have experienced this & what was the best way to deal with it?

Thank you as always,

:) x

[jumpinjen]

Hi there,

Firm boundaries need to be in place.... but fair ones too, that are appropriate for the age of the child.

Once mum has said no, she must stick to it, whatever happens, even if she thinks that she was possibly a bit harsh in saying no.....no has to mean no and not be swayed by a tantrum.

I have never used a time out step..... When a tantrum starts I direct the other children's attention away, and if necessary move the tantrumming little one to safe place where they can't bang their head/pull anything over themself.... i used to gently lay them on my rug with a few pillows around then ignore the behaviour until the child inititated positive contact..... it's not worth trying to reason as a young child with such strong emotions can't do reason!! After it is over i don't go into a big discussion of behaviour and reasons.... again too little to be useful, just offer a big cuddle and something fun to do and move on.

It might be useful to examine what the triggers are..... do they happen when mum says 'no' or are they when littel one is tired or hungry.... if so, try adding another snack into the day or building some more quiet time to read books etc.... avoiding triggers is a good way of avoiding conflict!

i am assuming from all this that the child is little - ie under three?? Older children need a different approach often with more talking involved!

HTH, Jen x

[Polly2]

I did a bit on tantrums in an assignment for my FD. This is a good article:

http://www.teachingexpertise.com/articles/creative-solutions-early-years-behaviour-3716

It talks about lots of things but if you scroll down there are some helpful tips on tantrums. :thumbsup: