(Scene: 7am. We hear the sound of the rubbish truck in the distance)
Mr. 3: what’s that noise?
Mum: probably the rubbish truck.
Mr. 3: yeah why?
Mum: it’s here to collect our rubbish.
Mr. 3: yeah why?
Mum: because it’s our rubbish day.
Mr. 3: why is it our rubbish day?
Mum: because everyone has a day when they have to put out their rubbish bins.
… and this conversation continued to be 5 times as long!
Does your little darling ask a lot of ‘why’ questions or is inquisitive about absolutely everything? My little boy is constantly jumping, frolicking and always needing to be on the move.
Here are some tips I found useful when dealing with my particularly active toddler:
Ensure he knows what’s coming: I found that giving my toddler plenty of warning before a change of activity is necessary. If we are about to leave the park or we need to head out to the shops, I will repeat myself several times ensuring he has time to prepare. I found that this helped to avoid unnecessary tantrums and misbehavior. It may be that your child is insecure of what is coming next and this uncertainly is causing his restlessness. I do find I need to be clear and specific; for example, ‘when we get home, you will need to put your shoes away, wash your hands and sit on the couch ready for Mummy to give you a snack’.
Ask him to ‘tell you’ whats wrong: encourage your toddler to express himself, even in simple words: ‘I’m hot’ or ‘I’m hungry’. These could very well be reasons for him getting irritated or cranky. You could say to him ‘I’m feeling hot too, as soon as Mummy has finished at the shops we will go home and have a cold drink of water!’
Use those positive words: ‘stop touching the fan, put your toys away- the house looks too messy! Stop pushing your sister, don’t pull that toy!’ Some days I find myself sounding like a broken record. So… I did a little experiment and used only positive comments for a day (yes it was difficult!!) such as ‘I would love you to clean up your toys so we can go and play outside!” or ‘good boy for playing gently with your sister, remember that she gets upset if you push her’. I was amazed how well encouraging words worked!
They have energy – let it out!: most toddlers like to be on the go all the time! Let them play outside, help you water the plants or sweep up leaves. I have found that keeping them busy can tone down their shouting and boisterousness. We invested in a few outdoor toys (all purchased second-hand from recycle shops) such as ride on cars, spades, a sandpit and a few hula hoops. We also have a whole box filled with old pots and pans, cooking utensils, empty yoghurt tubs and biscuit tins for the children to play with. We found the children have endless fun! It is not necessary to change their toys often as once outside they seem to have a great imagination. And remember, the harder they play, the harder they will sleep – well, we hope!
Quiet time: it is important that children know how to sit down, be still and remain quiet for a period of time. Several of these activities may have to be taught until your toddler become interested in the task. Some activities I found useful are; coloring in (I print outlines of his favourite characters to colour in), play dough, reading stories, searching through his eye-spy bag etc. I do find that TV time does help my little boy to settle down at times. I am just aware of what and how much TV he watches.
Below are several links to simple craft activities for toddlers:
Bible Craft: Jonah and the Whale
Tissue Box Craft: Making a Carwash / Gas Station
Kids Craft: Toilet roll slide – from household items
Getting started with Bible Crafts
Unnecessary situations: I know for a fact that my children HATE trolley time and they find the shops boring! They annoy each other while we are out and there is a lot of so called ‘misbehaviour’. I will try to avoid long shopping trips where they have to be contained in a trolley or pram. I find that incentives work well too; while grocery shopping, I will find a place with an indoor playground so that they have something to look forward to afterwards.
Avoiding unnecessary actions might also be helpful to your toddler. There was a point where I would insist upon my child greeting someone appropriately or forcing him to give Aunty so and so a cuddle. By leaving him free in that moment, this made him a lot less tense and I found that being less pushy actually made him more relaxed to do so in his own time. All children are different and you will know what does or doesn’t work well with your child!
Toddlers are active little people and some days I’m sure we would wish for half the amount of their energy! Try to enjoy this stage of them growing up. Make the most of varying situations and be a part of their craziness, laughter and excitement! I’m sure it will pass all too quickly.
Originally posted 2014-03-03 22:08:43.