4 Reasons Your Child Might be Acting Out

Hey, parents, we know it can be super frustrating to try to teach, reason with, or explain things to a child who is out of control.

It's exhausting!

If you add a speech and/or language delay into the mix...things get even trickier, fast.  


Want to help your kid?  Here's What To Do First:

Trying to get a handle on our own behavior is tough enough.  When you can't figure out your child's behavior it can be overwhelming! A great place to start is to try to find what your kid is trying to communicate with their behavior.  The behavior is functioning to tell you something.

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Looking at behavior as a way to communicate will help you see past the screaming.   What is your child trying to tell you?

Check for these reasons your child might be acting out:

KEEPING MY STUFF

• "I'm worried I might lose this awesome thing!  I want to keep it!"

GETTING ATTENTION

• "Notice me please!!!"

I DON'T WANT THIS

• "Get me out of here!"
• "No thank you!"

I NEED A BREAK

• "I want to wiggle and move!"
• "I need a quiet place, this one is too crazy!"

If you can figure out what your child is trying to tell you by crying, hitting, yelling, running away, etc.  You can help him find a new way to communicate those feelings.  Realizing that those behaviors have meaning will help you understand them.  Then you can replace the challenging behaviors with something that works better for your family AND still helps your child get his message across.

Are you interested in learning about positive parenting skills that might help you respond to challenging behaviors? Stay tuned!  That will be the next post in this blog series!