ShoeGal
We will be traveling to my sister in law's house this weekend, and my daughter is 20 months, and already in her terrible twos! Any tips on how to make this a fun and safe, (And SANE!!) trip for all of us? We will be outside for the reunion, any tips on entertaining her outside where there's not much for kids to do???
we will be traveling by car.
Answer
The first step to taking a long car ride is to build in LOTS of stops along the way. A normal 4 hour drive will be about 5 ½ hours, but it seems to go faster with those stops.
For a long (10 hours!) car trip last summer, I got small toys & snacks and âwrappedâ them in plain brown lunch bags, sealed with a sticker. The âpresentsâ ranged from a lollipop to a small car, to various snacks (I picked stuff I donât usually buy so it would be a surprise treat). Every so often, my son got to open a present âand it worked great.
As for entertaining her outside during the reunion, bring balls to throw or kick, bubbles, a Frisbee â and donât forget there will be lots of family members to help amuse her.
The first step to taking a long car ride is to build in LOTS of stops along the way. A normal 4 hour drive will be about 5 ½ hours, but it seems to go faster with those stops.
For a long (10 hours!) car trip last summer, I got small toys & snacks and âwrappedâ them in plain brown lunch bags, sealed with a sticker. The âpresentsâ ranged from a lollipop to a small car, to various snacks (I picked stuff I donât usually buy so it would be a surprise treat). Every so often, my son got to open a present âand it worked great.
As for entertaining her outside during the reunion, bring balls to throw or kick, bubbles, a Frisbee â and donât forget there will be lots of family members to help amuse her.
Why is teaching toddlers so hard?
Lucille
Please read my story and give me your opinion on whether this isn't the field for me or whether toddlers are honestly hard to teach/take care of. I need honest/blunt opinions!
i am trying to figure out if maybe this age or teaching just isn't for me. I have been going for an Early childhood education degree and have only taken a few classes so far. I got my 1st job at a child care center and the only experience i have with kids hands-on is from volunteering with preschool age kids over the summer.
So i am used to preschool but they put me in with toddlers. i never worked with that young age before. I must say it has been challenging for me and it seems like they never listen, it's like my voice falls on deaf ears, i am the only one who cleans up toys...i can't get the kids to clean up any toys...all they do is take more new ones out or they go to sit down for lunch and not clean up. If I remind a child i am passing by, they just ignore me and go the opposite direction, they don't go clean up. Even after repeated and repeated sayings to the group of "let's clean up for lunch." or going up to individual ones who take more toys out and say "we are not taking toys out, put them away so we can have lunch" doesn't work.
I even try to entice the, by asking "do you want lunch?" when they say yes, i say "then let's clean up these toys, put those toys there on this shelf, so we can have lunch." That doesn't get them to do it either. All I do is waste my voice, they don't listen at all. It frustrates me that they have no discipline. The other teacher says "they're toddlers, relax." or "toddlers are supposed to be messy." She babies them if they have a tantrum and holds them rather than being firm with them and telling them why it is not okay to act that way.
They are not supposed to put toys on the table (school rule) and they do constantly all day long, we tell them, we repeat it, it just doesn't improve. The other teacher doesn't always enforce it. I tell them the trucks are going to go bye bye if we can't keep them on the floor. Then she gets mad if i take the trucks away from them, but i am trying to teach them discipline. she also says "they are only 1 to 1 1/2, they don't understand to not do things, even if we tell them not to."
But maybe i have the wrong idea or maybe i just suck at this. when the teacher from the other toddler room comes in, she enforces firmness like i do and sits a child in time out if they throw a tantrum and later explains why it wasn't okay what they did or she takes the trucks away if she has to tell them more than 3 times. I LIKE that! But....when i do it...that one teacher just makes me feel like i'm being mean to the toddlers.and i can't stop them or get them to listen, so i just feel like giving up. i didn't think it would be this hard.
So does that mean this age isn't for me or is it honestly a hard age? Maybe i am being too mean? what does anyone think? i just need honest opinions, please!
Answer
Do some reading and research about toddlers in your spare time. They are really a special little group and are very different from preschoolers. One interesting thing about toddlers is some are more like infants while some are more like preschoolers. Their development varies a great deal.
Toddlers need lots of love, cuddles, and support to feel confident and safe in the world around them. If you don't love them, don't work with them. Toddlers may not be for you. I don't think it's a hard age - just different. I think you are taking what you know about preschoolers and trying to apply it to toddlers and that just doesn't work.
The Zero to Three website has lots of helpful information about this age group. Here's one link that would be especially helpful: http://www.zerotothree.org/child-development/social-emotional-development/self-control-12-24-months-1-1.html
Time out is not appropriate for toddlers. (Well, imo, not appropriate for any child, but that's another post). They don't understand their feelings yet and certainly are not capable of controlling them. If toddlers are having tantrums, it's likely the fault of the adults in the room. Teachers must arrange the environment and schedule to avoid situations that upset toddlers. For example, don't expect them to immediately drop what they are doing and do what you say. Do not expect them to share toys - they don't get that yet and are not capable of it. If other children are too close to them or in their space, they don't know how to handle it. Most do not have the language to express what they are thinking, feeling, or needing, hence tantrums. They need comfort from adults when they are experiencing feelings they can't express. Toddlers can begin to be taught words to use: "You can tell her 'no! I don't like that!' " We have to GIVE them the words to use and eventually (usually not until preschool age) they will be able to use them effectively.
Toddlers are extremely egocentric. They do not understand that it is important to you that they clean up and put things away. If you want them to do it, you have to get involved. Make it a game. Sing a song. Give them LOTS of time to work on it. You have to do it together and they will not do much of it. You can help this by not putting out as many toys, encouraging them to pick up more frequently throughout playtime (Let's put the duplo back in the bin.), and just trying to make it fun. Also, lower your expectations. Do ALL the toys REALLY have to be put away before lunch? Choose your battles wisely.
No toys on the tables? Why on earth not? What a strange rule. Again, it's all about choosing battles. Is this really something worth fighting over? Perhaps it can be a rule for preschool where they tend to be better about understanding rules (although I can't even imagine a reason for that one).
It may seem like they're not listening, but it could be they don't understand you yet. Keep your instructions very simple. Their language skills are still developing. Again, they are also egocentric. All that matters to them is what THEY want.
Honestly, 1 to 1 1/2 yr olds are still babies that need lots of cuddles, love, and patience. They're my favorite age group! They do something new every day. They find everything interesting, new, and exciting.
Do some reading and research about toddlers in your spare time. They are really a special little group and are very different from preschoolers. One interesting thing about toddlers is some are more like infants while some are more like preschoolers. Their development varies a great deal.
Toddlers need lots of love, cuddles, and support to feel confident and safe in the world around them. If you don't love them, don't work with them. Toddlers may not be for you. I don't think it's a hard age - just different. I think you are taking what you know about preschoolers and trying to apply it to toddlers and that just doesn't work.
The Zero to Three website has lots of helpful information about this age group. Here's one link that would be especially helpful: http://www.zerotothree.org/child-development/social-emotional-development/self-control-12-24-months-1-1.html
Time out is not appropriate for toddlers. (Well, imo, not appropriate for any child, but that's another post). They don't understand their feelings yet and certainly are not capable of controlling them. If toddlers are having tantrums, it's likely the fault of the adults in the room. Teachers must arrange the environment and schedule to avoid situations that upset toddlers. For example, don't expect them to immediately drop what they are doing and do what you say. Do not expect them to share toys - they don't get that yet and are not capable of it. If other children are too close to them or in their space, they don't know how to handle it. Most do not have the language to express what they are thinking, feeling, or needing, hence tantrums. They need comfort from adults when they are experiencing feelings they can't express. Toddlers can begin to be taught words to use: "You can tell her 'no! I don't like that!' " We have to GIVE them the words to use and eventually (usually not until preschool age) they will be able to use them effectively.
Toddlers are extremely egocentric. They do not understand that it is important to you that they clean up and put things away. If you want them to do it, you have to get involved. Make it a game. Sing a song. Give them LOTS of time to work on it. You have to do it together and they will not do much of it. You can help this by not putting out as many toys, encouraging them to pick up more frequently throughout playtime (Let's put the duplo back in the bin.), and just trying to make it fun. Also, lower your expectations. Do ALL the toys REALLY have to be put away before lunch? Choose your battles wisely.
No toys on the tables? Why on earth not? What a strange rule. Again, it's all about choosing battles. Is this really something worth fighting over? Perhaps it can be a rule for preschool where they tend to be better about understanding rules (although I can't even imagine a reason for that one).
It may seem like they're not listening, but it could be they don't understand you yet. Keep your instructions very simple. Their language skills are still developing. Again, they are also egocentric. All that matters to them is what THEY want.
Honestly, 1 to 1 1/2 yr olds are still babies that need lots of cuddles, love, and patience. They're my favorite age group! They do something new every day. They find everything interesting, new, and exciting.
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