When they’re asleep, all toddlers look like precious little angels. Isn’t it incredible? But then when they wake up, it isn’t always heaven. In fact, for some moms, it is a far cry from heaven. Toddlers can be the most frustrating little humans on earth. Here are some of their most exasperating antics.
- Screaming – There are some little kids out there with lungs made of NASA grade indestructible material. If these voices could be recorded and put on car alarms, nobody would steal cars anymore. The funny thing is, some kids just like to scream for the joy of screaming.
- The incessant “NO” – This can be such an irksome little habit, and yet, it is what the terrible twos are made of. When your toddler get’s stuck in “no” mode, run down a list of things and toward the end add in something you know they like to do. Chances are they will say “NO!” then, look at you puzzled and start back peddling. It doesn’t stop the habit, but it does add a bit of humor to the situation.
- Biting – Do you have a biter in the house? This can be a serious problem and will land you and your child in big trouble if someone else’s child gets bitten. This habit needs to be nipped in the bud.
- Always needs to be the center of attention – What a cute kid! For a little while anyway; but after a while all that cuteness wears off and people start getting annoyed at your little star. There can also be some embarrassment for you when you have a kid who’ll do anything just to be the main attraction, even if that ‘anything’ is naughty thing.
- Refusing to potty – In some families, there is a push to potty train by a certain age. There are some kids that just aren’t ready to use the potty when you think they should be. If it’s any consolation, there aren’t any kids wearing diapers in high school unless they truly need to for medical reasons.
- Prone to tantrums – Throwing tantrums can be a extraordinarily irritating habit, especially when done in the middle of a store or other public place. One mother got her daughter to stop by throwing a tantrum herself complete with getting down on the ground arms and legs flailing. “Mommy, stop! Don’t do that!” The kid never threw another tantrum.
- Hitting – Being a bystander and watching a mom get pummeled by a toddler is a hard thing to do without wanting to say something. Chances are Mom knows how it looks and is embarrassed as well. If your little one is a Mike Tyson wannabe, you would do well to curtail those tendencies or channel them in a more acceptable course.
- Kicking – Some kids will go up to perfect strangers and plant a good swift kick right on the shins. If this sounds like your little angel, you may want to consider finding a way to end the violence.
- Inappropriate behavior – Some behaviors are obviously inappropriate and hopefully you can talk with your little one and get it to stop. If your child is displaying behavior you consider inappropriate, then applying the proper discipline immediately may help prevent future repetitions.
- Whining – Do you ever wonder how toddlers learned to whine? They seem to master it overnight, and it can send you right up the wall. Sometimes whining back at them stops it. Other times you may have to take more drastic measures.
The bottom line is that any frustrating behavior that your toddler displays needs to be dealt with immediately, even if it is funny or cute. Some things that are amusing and cute at one age can turn out to be embarrassing and maddening as your child gets older. Record the cuteness so you can remember it later, but make sure you handle the behavior before it gets out of hand.
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Getting a groggy kid up and running in the morning can be a challenge. Just like their adult counterparts, there are certainly children out there who are simply not morning people. Instead of fighting every morning, here are ten exercises that you can encourage your child to do in order to get the blood flowing.
- Shake it Up! – Encouraging a newly-awakened child to get out of bed and “shake off” their sleepiness by stomping their feet and waving their arms can introduce an element of silly fun while also helping to fight the battle of the snooze button.
- Jumping Jacks – This favorite staple of Phys Ed classes everywhere can also be an effective way of helping a sleepy youngster become more alert and ready to face the day. It might be a good idea to get kids into an open area; disoriented kids might be more likely to bump into or stumble over things. No one wants to start the morning off with a boo-boo!
- Tickle Fights – Bleary-eyed kids are sure to come to their senses quickly when under a tickle-attack; encouraging your kids to tickle back in a full on “tickle fight” is not only physically stimulating for them, but also can be a bonding experience as you greet the morning with laughter.
- Toe Touches – Rather than the athletic gymnast’s toe touches, encourage your kids to stand up straight and touch their toes a few times. This can help to stretch sleep-stiff muscles and also provide the physical stimulation that will get kids up and running, ready to face the day.
- Big Stretch! – A deliberately exaggerated, cartoonish stretch-and-yawn session might be just what doctor ordered when it comes to getting a kid out of bed and moving around. If you’re of the yoga-inclined persuasion, working some simple yoga stretches and poses in might also be a good idea.
- Make-The-Bed Race – If you have more than one child, organizing a make-the-bed race is not only a great way to get them up and at ‘em; it also helps them to make tidiness a part of their early-morning routine. This exercise certainly works better if you have kids that share a bedroom; if not, be prepared to referee from the hallway!
- Morning Jogging – The morning jog is a huge part of many adult’s wake-up routine; if you’re a jogger, bringing school-aged kids along can help them get a good start to the day and learn the importance of an exercise routine.
- Unstructured Physical Activity – Instead of instituting a policy of specific exercises, it might be better received to let kids choose their own methods. Unstructured physical activity is just as effective as the more rigid regimens, but allows kids to enjoy themselves while getting their hearts pumping.
- Dance Party – Impromptu dance party wake-up sessions can be the result of a radio alarm clock; the pre-planned version will require a bit more preparation. However, there are few things in the world that get kids up and moving like raucous dancing; be ready for lots of laughing fits and silly dance moves!
- Equipment Exercises for Older Kids – Integrating very small hand weights or other exercise equipment into an older child’s routine can help re-spark their interest in working out. Letting them use “grown up” equipment is a great way to keep them feeling excited about being active.
You and the kids will find your mornings going a lot smoother if they get the blood flowing to their muscles and brain right away when they get out of bed.
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Kids are so much more advanced today than we were. They are learning far more at a much faster rate. Stuff that I learned in 6th grade my son is learning in 4th. But what do you do when your child is struggling in a class? You get him/her some help right? I know what you are thinking, why pay someone to help my kid when I can do it for free? Well, check out 10 signs your child needs a better tutor than you for the answer to that question.
- Different methods: Times have changed and so have teaching methods. You may know how to get the answer, but do you know how your child is being taught to get the answer? They have something called “new math” today where the kids are rounding and estimating more. The point is that they are learning how to do things differently than you did them and so it will be hard for you to help them when you don’t know the current methods being taught.
- Been too long: If your child is studying long division or fractions and those aren’t something that you deal with on a daily basis then maybe it’s just been too long since you’ve done some of these things for you to be the best tutor for your child. Could you look at a book and remind yourself? Maybe, if you had a book to look at. Kids today don’t drag big text books home like they once did.
- More patience: If you’re like me a tutor would have to have more patience than I do with my child. I know that I have more patience with other people’s children so I would assume that it would work the same way with a professional tutor. This is what they do. Your child will learn better if they aren’t worried about you losing your patience with them.
- Third party: Often times children will listen better to a third party than they do to their own parent. There is something about someone new that makes children want to do their best. They will listen better, they will even try to impress their tutor and this is all because they aren’t you. Mom and Dad know them and all of their faults and why should they try to be different? They ‘hear’ you, but I think they will ‘listen’ to a tutor.
- Time commitment: How much of a time commitment can you make to help your child? Can you really spend an hour with them three times a week to go over something? And I mean a solid hour where there are no distractions. If you get your child a tutor they can often meet at the school, before or after classes.
- You don’t know how to help: Maybe math wasn’t your thing or you don’t remember how to do signs and cosigns. Parents can look over the worksheet, but you weren’t in class with them and even if you were getting the concept across to your child if you don’t really understand it isn’t going to work. Tutors will have several different ways to approach a subject in order to help your child.
- Don’t want to disappoint: Kids don’t want to disappoint a parent so they may say that they understand something when they don’t. They may feel stupid asking a question for the third time if they still don’t understand. Tutors are used to this kind of thing and they can try to rephrase an answer in order to explain it differently so that maybe it will click with your child.
- More convenient: Having your child meet with a tutor before or after school would be a lot more convenient than having to try to find a time after you get home from work. Your child is already in learning mode at those times and more awake and able to learn. If you get home from work at 6 and then you eat supper and you sit down to help your child at 7 you are now dealing with a child who is probably getting tired.
- Teacher approved: While I’m sure you get along just fine with your child’s teacher there may be a concern that parents don’t give her fully honest feedback. If your child has fallen behind in a subject and they need a tutor the teacher will want updates from a tutor as to how they are doing. Parents may exaggerate how well their child is doing.
- Specialization: If your child has an issue like dyslexia or other learning challenges, getting a tutor who specializes in teaching children like yours will help your child far more than you can.
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