How do I stop my child from hitting?

Question

8 year old hitting other students

Answer 1

Unfortunately it seems like it's happening at school because you said the word "students."  It does not sound like you are there to correct him at the time.  Is he hitting outside of school as well?  

An eight year old is capable of understanding the consequences of his actions.  You need to make the consequences sufficient enough to deter him.  First of all, a child who is hitting should not be spanked.  I'm not advocating that parents refrain from spanking, because I spank my child myself, but for a child who chronically hits, he can't discern the difference between when you hit him and when he hits other children.  

If his teacher reports him hitting at school, have him eat dinner and do his homework and then send him straight to bed for the evening.  No phone, no tv, no friends, no exceptions.   Give it 2 weeks and if you don't see a marked decrease in the behavior, make the consequences more severe.  Take away a fun activity from the weekend as well.  You also may want to visit the classroom and see what goes on during the day.  If the hitting happens on the playground, have the school make him stay inside for recess the next day after hitting.

If none of this works, you may want to consult a psychologist.

Answer 2

Spank him the next time he is caught doing it.

Answer 3

At 8 years old he knows better than to hit so it's not a matter of him not knowing it hurts or that it's not right.  He needs no long explanation like "Now Johnny, how would you feel if Matt hit you?  HItting is not a nice thing".  He's beyond that and should already know all of that.  A talk like that would better benefit a toddler or preschooler.  The next time he decides to hit another child, tell him he is not allowed to play with friends for a week.  He will start missing out on playing with friends and I'm sure the parents of the other children would not be happy to learn he is hitting their child and strangely enough charges could be filed against you for not doing anything to stop the behavior (but that's only if you don't do anything to correct him).  Tell him he will loose friends if he continues to do this.  If he still continues, take away one privilege at a time for a week at a time until he gets the message.

Answer 4

NO more video games and violence on TV..

tell him if he'd stop he'd get 10 points a day and if he hit someone he'd lose them..

when he scores 100 get him something..

he'll stop soon, hopefully..

Answer 5

I had this problem with a young niece of mine.  We taught her that when she felt very angry she should put her hands in her pocket and use her words instead.  We also taught her to find an adult to help her express her anger without using her hands.  The consequence when she did hit was immediate.  She was separated from any group and sent to her room or to a place by herself.  It would be done very calmly but very clearly.  She could not come back until she was calm enough to apologize.  Good luck with it.

Answer 6

To punish is one thing but maybe his problem is emotional.

Have you seen a child psychologist or school counselor?