Biting at Daycare - Belvidere Center,VT

D.,

I feel you should be concerned!

I like to know since when has biting become socially acceptable?

I've heard all the reasons why a biter is a biter. I think most of us understand that Tots have a hard time expressing their language and emotions as clearly as adults but the bottom line here is... Biting is a nasty habit.

The human bite CAN carry risks especially if a biter breaks the skin of another. Biting can cause infections and the transmission of diseases.

I must say I'm a bit shocked that your child's daycare has not taken the matter more seriously for biting is a liability.

Biters should always be removed from a biting event that they have caused. By not removing a child from an event that has caused another child pain or discomfort is teaching that child that it is simply okay to hurt another person!

In my opinion there is no excuses warranted enough to subject a child to another child's aggressive behavior.

If I were you I would re-examine your child's daycare policies and review why this daycare would be beneficial to your child.

Good Luck

I would take her out. The staff should be much more concerned about this problem.

I've got a 2 year old and a 3 year old and both are in daycare so I've recently lived through this period. Three times in three months is really not bad at all. I know its upsetting, but its a stage they go through. Its becuase they can't talk well yet and can't properly express what they want or what they feel. So biting, hitting, pinching... I know as a parent you want to protect your child, but I think you will find this in all daycares unless you go to a family one in someone's home and they dont have any other toddlers in the group. One thing I would suggest though is looking into why another child was able to go over to your child when she was sleeping - shouldnt that child have been laying down too? I promise they will grow out of the stage - 20 months sounds right about when I remember it...
How did the staff handle the bite? Did they call you to tell you about it? Did they apply antiseptic to the broken skin? You can't change the toddler's behavior, but you can work on the staff's if you feel they didnt do something right.
Good luck with your decision. I know its hard.

I am also having this same issue. My daughter will be three next month. Of course things happen anywhere children are. My concern is that my daughter does not bite when she comes home only at daycare. My hsuband and I have been told that she only bites when someone bites her. She came home about three weeks ago with a bite mark so bad that it almost broke the skin. This bite mark with bruise lasted almost two weeks. I spoke with the director and she said that the child that bit her then is being dealt with because he/she seems to be a recurring biter. Now she comes home yesterday with a bite mark above her left eyebrow. There is a bruise around the bite marks. What does a person do in this situation? I called the doctor and she did not need to be seen. I like the daycare facility overall but I do think that they are not paying attention to the children during freeplay. There have been numerous complaints from other parents. Is there actually something that the Department of Human Services can do if someone complains to them saying their child is being neglected? My daughter is not perfect and I will be the first to admit this. When is enough enough? Signed Concerned Parent Gulf Coast Mississippi

Of course it's upsetting, because your daughter is getting hurt. If you want to pull her out it would totally be reasonable. However, you should know that biting is an extremely common toddler behavior, and you will likely run into the same problem whereever you go. It seems that the center that you use now has a plan of action, and my inclination would be to see how that works out. (Just FYI, when my daughter was a toddler, she was bitten 8 times in 3 months, so I know how upsetting this can be). We've otherwise been really happy with our center and didn't think things would be better elsewhere, and it ended up working out. Good luck with your decision.