My Active Toddler Will Not Stop Throwing Things Inside. Help!

In addition to taking the thrown items away, we also just started placing our toddler outside when he threw. We'd say "Oh, I'm sorry you forgot that we only throw things when we are outside. This toy is in time out and it looks like you want to play outside." Then we'd put him outside for a couple of minutes. Usually he loved it and it helped him remember that outside is for rough play.

Take everything he throws away. Also remove all "balls" out of the house and make it clear they are for outside.

Boys will be boys, but if you take enough of his "thrown" toys etc. away--maybe put them in a laundry basket on the fridge....Maybe he could earn one back for everday he doesn't throw a toy. You may need to use a reward chart along with taking the toys away and explaining he is ruining / breaking things and that breaking things will not be tolerated. They are old enough to help you create a list of "house rules" as well
ex.
1. no breaking or throwing things
2. no climbing, jumping, running on furniture
3. brush teeth before school and bed
4. food only in the kitchen
etc. Let them make some of the rules,....then refer to the house rules as the "disciplinarian"... Make sure they understand why there are rules.

Hang in there.
R.

You should read Parenting with Love and Logic by Jim Fay and Dr. Foster Cline. What the other ladies have said sound like just what these guys would suggest. Also if you are a middle school teacher, it will help with your classroom too. I used to teach and wished I had known about Love and Logic then. I have only been using the techniques since the beginning of the year. It has totally changed our lives for the better and saved my sanity! Good luck with the throwing!

My little boy loves to throw things as well, and has a really good arm for a 2-year old! I agree with removing toys that your son is throwing - if they are objects that will hurt someone, or break something. I've found with my son that if I give him an acceptable activity in addition to a restriction, he is more likely to listen and not throw a tantrum. For example, if he throws blocks I take the blocks away (usually for about 24 hours) and say "we don't throw blocks" and then I give him a ball. If he throws a ball in the kitchen, which is off-limits, then I remind him that we don't throw balls in the kitchen and tell him he can throw it in the hall or his bedroom; he has a toddler-size basketball hoop in his bedroom, which helps. If the throwing gets out of hand, then I sit down and we roll balls back and forth or I try to redirect him to a gentler activity. I've found this is pretty effective with my kids, especially since it's winter and we don't have a yard - we live in an apartment complex - for them to play in.

My 4 year old daughter started to do that recently. What I did was take away everything she throws. She stopped within days of all her stuff disappearing one by one. Good Luck

Hi H.,

I'm a mom of 2 very active boys, one of whom is a 2.5 year old with a really good throwing arm. We tried talking and timeouts too with no effect. We did the basic stuff, like put away any hard balls, etc. that could cause damage because he doesnt really understand the difference between a hard leather baseball and a nerf. We finally started putting whatever he throws into timeout, explaining that we dont throw toys or balls or food, etc. in the house to help make the connection between throwing and the timeout. He figured out to not throw food very quickly because his meal went into timeout. It took 2 or 3 rounds of putting his dinner in timeout for a few minutes to break that habit. With balls or toys, I usually will give a warning or two before putting the toys into timeout.

I hope that helps!