A.S. asks from Bethlehem, PA on October 01, 2006
A Biting 3 Year Old..
I have a 3 year old little boy who is very verbal and can clearly tell you what he needs, etc. but over the last week about he has been biting.... I am completley at a loss here. He is in daycare and that is the only time he is biting.. any suggestions
More Answers
J.B. answers from Scranton on October 02, 2006
This is a good article about biting in the toddler years. You could print it out and share it with the daycare folks.
C.J. answers from Harrisburg on October 01, 2006
It is an attention thing!!!!! He is prob feeling a tad ignored at daycare. Ask him what he is feeling. I say that because my friend just went through the same thing, and that was the reason......Esp if he gets the attention when he bites, he will do it....Esp if that is really the only way he thinks he can get attention....Talk with the teachers, and the aids involved in the room....I hope that helps...I dont think that he is being ignored at daycare, but kids feel things differently then we do....He may be feeling others tension, and if the staff talks too much around him, he could feel left out of the mix, so he has to get there attention somehow....
K.P. answers from Scranton on October 01, 2006
Maybe... just maybe... Do you possibly think another child might be doing the same thing and is getting the attention he is craving or the object he wants by biting? That might be a good thing to check on. You might be able to talk with the instructors and ask if there are any more children in his general age group, who are around him often, that are doing this as well. Otherwise, my daughter thought that she could get our attention by biting us and the things around her. I clearly told her biting is only going to hurt her mouth and that if she couldn't stop biting just to get what she wants then she will have to sit in a chair for a few minutes until she is ready to ask the right way. I learned through "SuperNanny" that it's ok to put your child in a "time out" chair or corner. She suggests you put your child there 1 minute for every year old. My daughter is also 3 and believe me, 3 minutes is plenty for her to realize this kind of behavior will NOT be tolerated. She stopped biting things after only 3 days. Hopefully this will help. Good Luck!
B.F. answers from Scranton on October 02, 2006
My nephew went throught the same thing with biting and it was only at daycare. After close observation they found that he would bite because he was being picked on and bitten by some of the other children. When they moved him to another group of children the biting stopped.
P.F. answers from Lancaster on October 02, 2006
Hi! A.. I have a 2 yr old granddaugter and she tries to bite me. she actually caught me off guard and did bite me. I tell her, if she is attempting to bite, that if she wants to bite someone to bite herself, that way she will know how it feels when she bites someone else. And that is actually working. Maybe you could try that at home and that will keep her from trying to do that at daycare.
T. answers from Pittsburgh on October 02, 2006
I have a 20 mo with the same issue. I wish I had a suggestion. He is only biting at daycare and is an angel with me. I spoke with a child psyciatrist who advised to shadow him when he is playing and redirect when he goes to bite. Good luck
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