When your baby hits for the first time on the playground, you may want to teach him a stern lesson so that he doesn’t do it again, or, you may want to comfort the other person by admonishing your own baby. Of course, there are also doting grandparents who feel that their children do not hit with malicious intent and that there is no need to discipline them. Stern admonishment and ignoring the situation are not conducive to the development of your baby’s social interaction skills in the long run. In addition to immediately squatting down and apologizing for your baby, you need to learn to screen your baby’s behavior for the reasons why children hit at different ages. Why do some children hit? Every child has their own unique temperament and they react to the same situation in their own way. Don’t compare your baby to other children, not even your family’s first and second babies. Hitting is a behavior that needs to be corrected, but it doesn’t mean he has a “problem”. What to do if your baby is hitting from 0 to 1 year old Your baby may start hitting even before the age of 1. In fact, when a little baby swats, you will most likely not be angry, but rather find it funny. But please do not laugh, because your laughing is a kind of encouragement to him. A little baby hitting someone may be a game of arm waving, or maybe it’s a frustrating outburst of frustration and overwhelming venting. He does not yet have the ability to distinguish between right and wrong, so it is not time for discipline. Calmly tell him “no” and then quickly distract him to do something else. How to deal with a 1~2 year old baby who hits or bites is usually because he has more self-awareness, but is not yet able to say what he wants, using his body to express it is his most proficient way, at the same time, he does not have the ability to control his impulses. In other words, he has a lot of ideas, but can’t let others know well, so he uses hitting as a way of expression. Of course, this does not mean that you can ignore your baby’s aggressive behavior. You need to make your baby understand that hitting is wrong and teach him other ways to express his emotions. Simply tell him that hitting is wrong, and if he can already talk, you can teach him the appropriate way to communicate with his little one, such as teaching him to say, “Please move over.” If he still can’t control his emotions, then take him away from the “crime scene” and calm down for a while. Don’t reason with a two-year-old child A two-year-old child can’t understand reasoning. “If someone hits you, you will hurt too.” Such words are of little practical significance to him because he will not yet switch his perspective and put himself in someone else’s place. If you hit someone, you can’t play, and this is a consequence that he can understand If your baby pushes, kicks and hits other babies as soon as they come to play on the slide. Immediately pick him up, sit him down next to the other children and tell him when he stops hitting others and when he can go back to playing. This is a mild version of “lockdown” and gives your baby time to calm his temper and learn that there are consequences for hitting. Try not to act angry. Don’t yell at your baby. No amount of yelling at him will stop him from doing it again, but it will give him more opportunities to imitate “anger”. In fact, you should let him see how you control your temper, your behavior patterns, he will imitate. What about 2 to 3 year olds who hit? It is very common for two and three year olds to hit. Tantrums and crying are perfectly normal for a baby’s developing emotional world. However, you can’t let your baby hurt another child, even if he doesn’t mean to. In any case, you can’t teach by hitting him. Some parents do this because they want their children to know “what it’s like to be hit”. However, this only makes the baby think that hitting is okay. If you want your baby to play safely and happily with other children without hitting or grabbing toys, you can try the following methods: 1. Stop it right away, don’t wait When your baby is playing with other children, keep an eye on him. As soon as he starts hitting, stop it immediately. Don’t wait until he hits a second or third time before you say, “That’s too much!” . Hold him away from you immediately and calm down for two minutes. For a child this age, two minutes is enough. 2, give your baby more positive attention and love Children hitting, biting, kicking, etc., is a way to get your attention, and your attention is exactly what your baby wants. What you need to give your baby is positive attention, that is, showing affirmative and loving attention to him when he is playing well. He will no longer need to get your attention by hitting and biting people. 3. Summarize the rules and prevent problems before they happen Pay attention to whether there is a certain pattern to this behavior. You may find that certain situations tend to make him explode, for example, when other little ones take away his toy train. To avoid this, you can put away his most precious things and take out the toys he doesn’t like so much to share with others. If your baby is always prone to tantrums and hitting in the evening, one possibility is that he is too tired. Adjust your baby’s schedule and take him out to play again after he has eaten and slept enough. 4, play turn-taking games to develop patience Usually, children can’t really share until they are 3 years old, but they can also develop awareness in advance. You can play some simple games with him that require you to take turns in order. For example, petting a pet. Tell your child, “It’s my turn,” and after you pet him for a while, say, “It’s your turn. After he touches it for a while, then say to him: “It’s my turn again” and let him stop. If you have the conditions, you can even use a timer so that your child will know when it’s time for someone else to touch. You can let him play a little longer than you, so he will slowly be willing to take turns in order to play. 5, find new friends for your child If your baby always has problems playing with certain children, then you have to think about whether he is not suitable to play with these children. If your baby is always going to hit one or two of his buddies, it might be time to help him find some new ones. Try to take your child and his partner to a larger park to play. The more space your child has to run and play, the less likely they are to get into friction with each other.