Dealing With a Child Who Bites
Uh oh. You just got a call from your child's daycare—apparently, your little angel just took a bite out of her best buddy's arm.
It's upsetting—and embarrassing—when your child bites. Here are some ways to cope with a biting child:
- Try to anticipate the biting: If you know your child has a tendency to bite when she gets frustrated, try to remove her from a situation before she acts on her impulse.
- Make it clear that biting is unacceptable: Be firm when you tell your child, "We don't bite."
- Resit biting back to teach her a lesson. Biting back might actually reinforce the behavior instead of discouraging it.
- Encourage her to use words instead of biting.
- Show your child the damage she caused. "Biting hurts. Your friend is crying."
- Lavish attention on the child who has been bitten, not on the child who bit.
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