How to Teach Your Little One to Refrain from Hitting Others How to Teach Your Little One to Refrain from Hitti | Page 4

Stay calm and in control
When you find your child getting tensed or hitting others, you move in closely and say ‘stop’ in a firm
tone but not with anger. When you react with anger, you are indeed modeling a negative behavior
which you actually want your child to get rid of. Yelling or hitting your child in anger will do no good,
and, in fact, does the exact opposite of what you want your little one to learn. Always stay calm and
model self-regulation by lowering your voice and blowing out your tension through appropriate
behavior.
Teach empathy
While kids can hit playfully or because they get mad at others, either way, they are looking for
something to vent out their feelings of anger or frustration. You can explain to your kids that it is ok to
feel like that but not okay to hit. Teaching them empathy towards others is one way to stop such
aggressive behavior. You can let your child know how his/her behavior impacts others. But avoid
blaming the child or making him/her feel like the ‘bad’ guy.
Tell your child what TO DO
You can let your child reflect on better ways to handle aggressive feelings. Allow him/her to explore
alternatives such as calling the parents or walking away from a situation or stomping his/her feet. Teach
the kid appropriate behaviors and anything that doesn’t hurt others is well and good to do. Above all,
make sure to praise and reward your little one for any appropriate behavior he/she portrays.