Temper tantrums?

Question

My 2 year old grandchil is living with us and he has a very bad temper. He is a very sweet boy but when he dosen't get what he wants he gets on the floor and starts screaming. What can I do about this? I have tried timeouts but he dosen't really understand it yet.

Thank you for your help.

Answer 1

this is what 2 year old kids do.  ignore the tantrums and after it is over  explain to your grandchild that you love them but no means no.. expect this to last until he/she realizes it does not work with you.  be patient and strong..

Answer 2

Ignore him. Plain and simple. If he throws himself on the floor and is in no danger of kicking anything that can hurt him (like a glass table, bookcase etc) walk away. Of course keep an eye on him from a distance. The more you go to him when he has these the stronger the tantrum. When you see that he calms down, take him to a quiet area, (no other sound but your voice) and speak softly to him. Make sure you let him know that you see he is upset and ask him why if he begins to go into a tantrum speak in a whisper the louder he gets the lower you get. (this works before he goes into a tantrum or when he has calmed down.)

Don't give him what he wants. Whatever set him off has to be out of sight and mind for him to get the idea that he cannot have tantrums.

When my oldest was about 2 we had to take his sister who was one at the time to the emergency room. Well my son went into a wild tantrum in the hospital room. I paid him no mind. The doctors and nurses came running into the room and saw that I was ignoring him and said, "you are the first parent I have ever seen do this, we usually have to run in and get the parent(s) away from their kid because they use force to "calm" the tantrum at least you know what to do." It was the nicest compliment I ever received as a parent. It will take some time but it can be done.  Good luck.

Answer 3

They don't call them the "terrible twos" for nothing...sit back and wait until they are 4....3 is almost as bad!

Answer 4

Ignore them. Tell EVERYONE in the house to just ignore the tantrum, and only give him things when he is nice. You might just say to him, "You know that isn't going to work", and walk away. (He will be fine, and might even follow you to continue throwing the tantrum).

If you give in to ANY tantrums, then you will be reinforcing the idea that his bad behavior leads to good thigns, and the tantrums will only get worse and bigger over time.

The first few times you ignore the tantrums, he will get louder and more obnoxious in the hopes he will get his way if he makes it more miserable for you. Just don't give in (OR LET ANYONE ELSE!!!) Get earplugs, turn up the TV, whatever it takes.

The other side of this is to thank him for asking nicely, even if the answer is no. (But when he asks nicely, try to make the answer yes.) Say things like "Thank you for being such a gentleman and asking me so politely, we can't do ___________ right now, but I would be glad to help you with it later."

Good luck. It's a phase, but if you ignore it, it will go away much faster. :)

Answer 5

Well first of all ignore him. Don't give him the attention that he wants when he is throwing his temper tantrum.

When he calms down, you explain that throwing fits is not proper behavior and put him in time out until he apologizes. Sit in the same room with him, so that he knows he can not get up or go anywhere until he has apologized.

If he continues to scream and cry during time out or won't do what you are telling him to.....fully explain that he will get a spanked. If he fully understands that what he is doing is wrong (and the time out did not work) give him a direct consequence- spank him (2 for how old he is). Make sure you are consistent everytime. If you threaten him with a spanking...you do it. Otherwise he will walk right over you.

Make sure after you spank him...that you go over once again what he was doing wrong. He needs to realize that he was spanked for his bad behavior.....not your frustration and things like that.

good luck :)

Answer 6

Give him a good swat on the butt. After 2 -3 times he'll make the connection that throwing tantrum = swat on the butt.

Answer 7

ignore the tantrum!  he is wanting attention and a young child cant distinguish between good and bad attention the just want attention.  if he is not getting the attention he wants out of the behavior then the behavior will stop!  good luck!  the two year olds are challenging but hey you have the three year old phase to look forward to! :)