Posted 2 days ago
A 4-year-old – I’ll call him Popeye – had a habit of hitting other children in his preschool program. His teachers tried various approaches, including rewarding him with a treat on days when he...
Read MorePosted on 7/14/2020
Q: When my two-year-old gets angry, he sometimes gets down and bangs his head on the floor. This happens two or three times a week, generally speaking. He’s not bruised himself, yet, but I don’t...
Read MorePosted on 4/21/2020
Q: My three-year-old son tends to react physically when he's mad at a preschool classmate instead of talking it out and letting the teachers intervene. We have encouraged him to use words when...
Read MorePosted on 10/22/2019
Q: My normally happy 6-year-old son has recently started incorporating death and war-like games into his imaginative play. He isn't and has never been a mean-spirited child, but his dad and I just...
Read MorePosted on 1/12/2016
Q: My ex-husband and I have pretty much fifty-fifty custody of our 15-year-old son, who has become infected with his father’s disrespect for me. When he’s with me, he makes it very clear that he...
Read MorePosted on 6/23/2015
Living with Children John Rosemond Copyright 2015, John K. Rosemond Q: My 24-month-old is constantly wanting to be in her newborn baby brother’s face, poking and touching him. How can...
Read MorePosted on 10/14/2014
A first-grade teacher asks what she can do about a girl in her class who is completely undisciplined. After nearly two months of this teacher’s best efforts, the child’s behavior is no better. She...
Read MorePosted on 5/13/2014
Q: For the past few months, our usually compliant 4-year-old son has been having problems with defiant behavior at school. He often refuses to do what he is told by the teacher. What concerns us...
Read MorePosted on 10/29/2013
A radio talk show recently called to ask how parents should explain school shootings to their kids. My answer: It depends. I prefer, for the most part, for parents to say nothing unless...
Read MorePosted on 10/6/2013
Kicking the child out of the Garden of Eden John's "Garden of Eden" statement: Other Q and A or articles about this method may be searched by using the keyword "Garden" Below is detailed...
Read MorePosted on 7/16/2013
"I'm a yeller," she said, she being the mother of three young children. "No," I replied, "you're not. There is no genetic predisposition toward yelling, and no biochemical or...
Read MorePosted on 1/8/2013
Q: How can we help our 7-year-old twin girls stop fighting? They constantly provoke and antagonize each other. We thought this was just normal sibling conflict, but it seems to be developing into...
Read MorePosted on 1/1/2013
Q: Our son is in Kindergarten at a small private school. Most of the children in his class are boys. From the beginning, he's been somewhat of a behavior problem. Each time we get a notice from...
Read MorePosted on 11/8/2011
Punishment may fail with toddlers, but try a firm 'no' Q: My 1-year-old has started slapping us. He also screams a lot, often for no reason, or at least we can't figure out the reason. He won't...
Read MorePosted on 8/30/2011
What to do when a toddler bites a sibling Q. Our 36-month-old daughter has started biting her 22-month-old brother, usually over toys. My husband says I should put her in her room until he gets...
Read MorePosted on 7/26/2011
Q. I have 6-year-old twin boys who tend to get rambunctious when playing with other boys. How can I teach them to control their behavior when around other 'wild' kids? Recently, one of my boys and...
Read MorePosted on 7/25/2011
Q: I have 6-year-old twin boys who tend to get rambunctious when playing with other boys. How can I teach them to control their behavior when around other 'wild' kids? Recently, one of my boys...
Read MorePosted on 4/26/2011
Brother's response to surly sister stokes more outbursts Q: Our 7-year-old son and 32-month-old daughter squabble with each other constantly, mostly over taking and playing with each other's...
Read MorePosted on 2/22/2011
A hidden abuse problem: Kids who assault parents One of the more heartbreaking consequences of the "psychological" parenting philosophy and style that American parents began adopting in the...
Read MorePosted on 7/27/2010
Got a 2-year-old who throws? Give him the gate Q. Our son is a month from being 2. We're concerned about his throwing. During a recent dinner out, he threw a fork that whizzed by a lady's head,...
Read MorePosted on 11/18/2008
KIDS WHO HURT OTHERS NEED TO BE STOPPED Q. Our 4-year-old son is hitting others at preschool and has to spend the afternoon in his room for this. In soccer, he's pushing kids down and tripping...
Read MorePosted on 1/29/2008
Separate 3-year-old from baby Q. Our 3-year-old son is very tall and strong for his age. When he tries to "play" with his 10-month-old sister, he often ends up on top of her, putting her in a...
Read MorePosted on 10/30/2007
ARE BRAIN CHEMICALS TO BLAME FOR 6-YEAR-OLD'S BAD BEHAVIOR? Recently the parents of a 6-year-old boy asked my advice concerning his daily, sometimes violent tantrums which had been ongoing...
Read MorePosted on 8/7/2007
SENSE OF HUMOR IS ESSENTIAL FOR HANDLING REBELLIOUS CHILD Q. Our middle child, 5, is aggressive, loud and disrespectful when anyone dares to deny her or make her do something she doesn't...
Read MorePosted on 4/24/2007
STOP AGGRESSION WITH SIR METHOD Last week I promised to provide a tried-and-true solution to a problem that is increasing in both frequency and magnitude: children who are aggressive toward...
Read MorePosted on 4/17/2007
YADA-YADA DISCIPLINE DOESN'T WORK WITH AGGRESSIVE CHILDREN In a recent article on co-sleeping - the peculiar practice of sleeping with one's child or children to facilitate "bonding" - I made...
Read MorePosted on 1/24/2006
PARENT NEEDS TO ACT DECISIVELY TO END OLDER BROTHER'S ATTACKS Q: My 4-year-old is very aggressive toward his 30-month-old brother. I don't think he's completely to blame for their conflicts,...
Read MorePosted on 12/6/2005
AGGRESSIVE 3-YEAR-OLD LEAVES OLDER PAL IN TEARS Q: Our 5-year-old daughter and our next-door-neighbor's 3-year-old daughter play together a good amount of time. The problem is that their child...
Read MorePosted on 11/29/2005
BOYS' GUN GAMES USUALLY HARMLESS Q: A while back, the boys from next door (ages 6 and 8) began inviting my 5-year-old son to play good guys/bad guys and "war" with them. Initially the games...
Read MorePosted on 11/8/2005
Q: What's the most effective way to get young children, ages 2 and 3, to share, and what should I do when not sharing escalates into violence? I work in a day-care center and this is my biggest...
Read MorePosted on 8/2/2005
TO STOP TODDLER'S BITING, DISCIPLINE MUST BE POWERFUL Q: My live-in, 2-year-old grandson started biting people, usually for no reason, about six months ago. We're not talking about love...
Read MorePosted on 5/24/2005
IGNORE TODDLER'S HARMLESS OUTBURSTS TOO MUCH ATTENTION TO MINI-TANTRUMS COULD LEAD TO ESCALATION Q: Our 29-month-old son is mostly well-behaved. But when he doesn't get his way or becomes...
Read MorePosted on 10/5/2004
PLAYMATE'S AGGRESSION IS NOT TYPICAL Q: My 6-year-old son's best friend deliberately hurts him when on play dates at either house. It happens too often to be anything but purposeful. He's hit...
Read MorePosted on 2/24/2004
Q: My son will be 2 1/2 next month. I recently started a family day care at my home. I took in a 3-year-old boy and a 16-month-old girl. My son is not handling this change well. He has become...
Read MorePosted on 7/22/2003
Q: Is it OK to use timeout with a child who's barely 2? While I was watching church nursery today, a 2-year-old boy started pushing and hitting the other children. I put him in a chair every time...
Read MorePosted on 4/1/2003
GO EASY ON BIG BROTHER Q: When my husband and I realized we were guilty of having created a child-centered home, we began cracking down on our spoiled 5-year-old and began "centering" our...
Read MorePosted on 3/4/2003
PSYCHO-BABBLE CAN CLOUD YOUR VISION Q: I am a teacher of 3-year-olds at a church preschool. Most of the boys in the class have a lot of energy, but one boy in particular has some developmental...
Read MorePosted on 4/2/2002
MOM'S HAPPY SHE PUT FOOT DOWN Like most people, I love a good story that ends happily. Such is the story I am about to relate. In November, a mom wrote asking for help with her 2...
Read MorePosted on 5/22/2001
CLOSED MINDS SHUT OUT VITAL RESEARCH ON DAY CARE We live in the postmodern age, which is characterized by a rampant anti-intellectualism. It matters not, for example, that objective evidence...
Read MorePosted on 5/15/2001
LET'S HOLD THE BULLIES RESPONSIBLE Bullying has become the issue du jour in America. Not a day has gone by in the past few months that I have not read an article, opened an e-mail, or heard...
Read MorePosted on 4/17/2001
UNEARNED SELF ESTEEM SENDS KIDS CAREENING OUT OF CONTROL Who had higher self esteem: Mahatma Ghandi or Adolf Hitler? Columbine High School's 1999 valedictorian or the two CHS students who,...
Read MorePosted on 3/6/2001
Happy Ending File: A good buddy pediatrician tells me he recently saw a 4-year-old who had suddenly become aggressive, disrespectful, and emotionally explosive after several major transitions,...
Read MorePosted on 8/29/2000
STOP 'NONSHARING' WITH SWIFT ACTION Last week, after answering a question from the mother of a 5-year-old who was being abused by a 3-year-old playmate, I promised to follow up with guidelines...
Read MorePosted on 8/22/2000
POLITELY 'SUSPEND' PLAYTIME WITH A CHILD WHO KICKS, BITES Q. Our 5-year-old daughter and our next-door neighbor's 3-year-old daughter play together a good amount. The problem is that their...
Read MorePosted on 8/8/2000
2-YEAR-OLD'S BITING NEEDS TO BE PUT TO A STOP NOW Q. My brother and his wife have a big problem with their son, Axel, who recently turned 2. For the past 6 months or so, he has been biting...
Read MorePosted on 6/13/2000
4-YEAR-OLD WHO HITS OTHER KIDS NEEDS IMPULSE SENT TO HIS ROOM Here's an interesting tale: A 4-year-old - I'll call him Bluto - has a habit of hitting other children in his preschool program....
Read MorePosted on 11/16/1999
4-YEAR-OLD MUST PAY FOR HITTING BROTHER Q. My 4 year-old is very aggressive, sometimes even violent, toward his younger brother, age 30 months. I don't think he's completely to blame for their...
Read MorePosted on 11/3/1998
MOTHERS, DON'T PUT UP WITH ABUSIVE KIDS ONE MORE DAY Today's women are a paradoxical bunch. They are rightfully proud of the professional and political inroads they've made, yet they too often...
Read MorePosted on 3/3/1998
TODDLERS DON'T REALIZE YET THAT BABIES CAN BE HURT Q. Two days a week, my 2-year-old son attends a mother's morning out program that includes children as young as 8 months. At present, he is...
Read MorePosted on 2/1/1996
NO ONE KNOWS WHAT MAKES SOME TODDLERS BITE HOW TO HANDLE 15-MONTH-OLD'S FORCEFUL TEETHING' Q. Our 15-month-old son has recently started biting other children, usually when there's some...
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