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2 year olds and hitting


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Hi All

We have 2 little boys at our setting, one was 2 in October and the other turned 2 in January. They have been attending the setting since September for 1 session a week but they now do 2 sessions.

We are having real problems with them hitting all the other children and trashing the room. They run everywhere, running into everything and everyone. They hit but I don't think they realise they are hurting people as they are playing whilst they are doing it.

We have tried praise for all the good things they do which they love and we have tried sitting them out, getting them to say sorry etc. but to no avail.

They also go around the room swiping everything off the tables etc. and think its hilarious! I know this could be due to their age but its encouraging the others to do the same.

Any ideas PLEASE??

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I was sad to read your post because it just makes a difficult job even harder when we know we may be facing this type of behaviour almost everyday, particularly if it is something we haven't really had to deal with much in the past life of the group. I think a suggestion might be to have a staff member with them pretty much all of the time if that is possible with your ratios until they are really on message about the type of behaviour you desire in your group and decide upon your reward/ sanctions to suit each child. Keep larger amounts of resources out to a minimum for a while so that they cannot tip out boxes etc. and persevere with rewards of some description when positive behaviour happens. Discuss strategies with the families and see what they think.

 

Your other children have the right to feel safe at all times this may only happen if a staff member is close enough to the action to prevent and intervene before the unwanted behaviour occurs.

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Thankd panders. It is hard. There is only 2 of us as we are a very small group but we could try one of being with them as much as possible. It is hard and they are adorable children and parents are struggling to with their siblings. Its strange how they are from 2 different families but they are so similar!

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I would chat with the parents so you can have a continual strategy at home and nursery, it's really hard if they are ruining it for others and making it extra stressful for you!! We will either remove for a 'time out' as a lot of parents say they do this at home so we continue - with a set kind of phrase eg 'we don't hit as it's not kind', we then sit with them but give no attention as often otherwise they will leg it!!! Or similarly a reward chart / smiley / sad face chart where they stick stickers of a happy /sad face or you draw it on for a certain period of manageable time eg in hours slots!? Sometimes I believe it is just trial and error, what works for some doesn't work for others - good luck :-)

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I would chat with the parents so you can have a continual strategy at home and nursery, it's really hard if they are ruining it for others and making it extra stressful for you!! We will either remove for a 'time out' as a lot of parents say they do this at home so we continue - with a set kind of phrase eg 'we don't hit as it's not kind', we then sit with them but give no attention as often otherwise they will leg it!!! Or similarly a reward chart / smiley / sad face chart where they stick stickers of a happy /sad face or you draw it on for a certain period of manageable time eg in hours slots!? Sometimes I believe it is just trial and error, what works for some doesn't work for others - good luck :-)

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you need to look at WHY they are doing it...what are they getting out of it? are they bored/need focus/need rest etc etc they will be getting something out of it...if you can find out what it is you are halfway there! I personally don't do time out at 2 i don't think it is effective but i do do time in which is where they get a cuddle and a calm sit down while an adult explains in simple terms what they have done wrong and what they need to do next time...try to avoid words like nice and kind unless they really understand what these things mean....go and play 'nicely' is one of those things i try to avoid....what does it mean????! phrases like we dont do that here because it hurts people are much easier to understand.Their key workers need to work closely with them and work out what they like to do....at 2 it doesn't matter if it is the cars every day (you can do lots of things with cars!) but often i find 2 year olds dont know how to play and entertain themselves

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often i find 2 year olds dont know how to play and entertain themselves

I absolutely agree with this! My question in reading the above posts was 'Do they know how to play in any other way?' They might need to be shown quite literally how to play. To most children it does come naturally but not for all and certainly not for all two-year-olds. Showing them how to play in a more acceptable way will take an adult and a lot of patience and persistence but it might be the key to their behaviour. If they each come for different sessions, that means you must have one of them nearly all the time...so good luck! :1b

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We have found screening a 'safe area' off for our younger ones helps to focus them. So they have a basic sand, water, paint and some floor toys etc.

The older children like this too, and it is funny when you see them 'police' the little ones!! Gradually the younger ones start to access the wider area of the room as they become more ready to use the resources in a meaningful way.

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Thanks all, we will try these ideas. One of them is in tomorrow, so we can get started :1b

 

Louby loo- we are looking into this but as there are only 2 of us it is proving difficult.

Edited by klc106
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