Parents of Schoolgoers  Discussion Forum

hello everyone,

I have a 1 year old baby girl, she is very active and a happy baby, recently she has started screaming if she can not get what she wants, also if she gets angry she tries bite sometimes. is this age a good time to shout at her and disciplene, or just divert her attention b'coz i am having an argument over this with my in-laws as they say we have to scold or shout and control, but i feel since she is too young we just need to divert her attention. what do u all think and suggest.

thanks. shyama replied. your ar e very much on the right track at such an early stage the wise thing to do is to distract her attention which is best way to start her disciplining as it has been my personal experience too. Natalie replied. Hi Neha,
Ah the wonderful age of tantrums has arrived...don't worry this stage will soon pass. Screaming when not getting her way is the classic sign of a tantrum, also look out for throwing herself on the floor and screaming!! From experience, if she starts screaming for not getting her way, just ignore her. Make sure she is safe in a playpen or on the floor, don't leave her alone, but don't pay attention to her, don't look at her, don't fuss or even talk to her. If you ignore her she will realise that her actions are not having the desired effect and she will stop. My kids did this too for a few weeks but I ignored them. The moment they stopped screaming I would hug them and kiss them and play with them and now they rarely do it anymore, and if they do it is a very mild version of it.
Diverting her attention is also OK, but she may get used to having attention lavished on her every time she screams and then she may start screaming for attention.

Regarding the biting just try and prevent her from doing it. At that age they don't really understand the concept that they are hurting others. When you see her bending or opening her mouth just hold her away from you and in a gentle voice say 'No, it's not nice to bite' and distract her with something else. One of mine used to bite and in the end I had to gently nibble him back everytime he did it to me, and he got the message pretty soon.

However please, please don't shout at her or hit her. She won't understand it, she will only get confused. Not making a big deal of the tantrum is the best and the most effective way of dealing with it. And even later when you discipline her, be firm but loving.