My 3.5 yr old son has hit this stage where he yells all the time. He’s not yelling at anybody, just running around the furniture and doing loud continuous dinosaur growls and robot sounds. He’s doing it in the house, the car, and of course, in the bookstores and library. Everywhere we go - all the time. I think he’s been in time out for about 3 days now LOL. (I'm consistant with time outs; there's been no change in his diet and he doesn't get a lot of sugar) Does anybody have any other suggestions or neat tricks to get past, or through, this phase?
Hi B.,
I hope you get some good responses, I would love to know because 18month old boy is starting to do that too. I tried that whole "Let's use inside voices please" but I am thinking it is not working. LOL
www.DiscoveryToysLink.com/LisaRyan LisaM
Have you tried the 'this is your inside voice' and 'this is your outside voice' thing?
Take him outide and let him really be loud. And then bring him inside and have him whisper or talk quietly. Ask him to tell you when he needs to use his 'outside voice', and try to accomodate him if you can.
Maybe offer incentives if he can remember to use his inside voice for a certain period of time...
I am a mother of 1. She is now 14.
My sister has 4 kids and I helped raise the first 2 way back when.
Did you think that maybe he likes the time outs?
A suggestion.
Get down to his level, knees. Look at him and ask him to look at mommy because mommy has something special to tell you.
Tell him that there are inside voices and outside voices.
Tell him to ask you where those voices can be heard.
Have him walk you where those can be. You are on his terms when you ask him the question.
Tell him you will give him the answer of yes or no.
If he takes you in the back yard then say YES really loud and start running around with your hands in the air with him and making noises.
When he walks you in the house say no, we don't want to wake the baby. When you are in the car or at the store ask him if he can make those noises there. Ask him what he thinks if he can?
When you ask him then he will start to think that it is his idea and not your and reward him with kisses and hugs when he does something right.
I hope this will help. I worked at a daycare for 2 months in the 90's but I learned from my sisters faults and my daughter is the perfect daughter that never yelled or ran away from me when she was little. Never used the leash. :)
I don't really have suggestions, just the reassurance that at 3 1/2 my dd is going thru the same thing. We've been spending more time outdoors to let her burn off the extra energy (wherever it i coming from). Also the sound doesn't seem quite as loud outside as in the car. This seems to help some, along with the reminder that we use inside voices inside, etc. But I don't really discipline for the loudness, just reminding her seems to be enough, as long as we spend enough time in places where it is allowed to be so loud.
I've noticed a growth spurt coming on (eating 6 meals a day, etc) and think it may just be part of the whole package of growing again.
hth.
B.,
Hello. Maybe you should look into getting your childs hearing checked, it could be that he has a hearing problem and is unable to realize how loud he is actually being. Just a thought.
R.
I'm having the same problem only my son is only 2yrs and 11 months. Tonight in the store it was so bad, my husband told him he wasn't going to go with us anymore to the store! I think it was fine for a moment there though when I asked my son to pick out the cheese he wanted. I'm searching now for more ways I can keep him busy doing things that a re not so loud and senseless. This way I can keep my senses. He can count so perhaps when I need 4 cans of tuna he'll be happy to help me there as well. God bless your efforts to bring him back to earth. :)
He IS trying to impress someone. Has he seen the Transformer movie? or Jurassic Park? Give him time to do his own thing but explain to him that dinosaurs need time to sleep and that they cannot go to certain places, like the bookstore or library. Don't tell him yet but, does he know dinosaurs are extinct?
altho this is considered normal behavior for his age, just continue to reiterate that he can do it at home or outside, but not in the stores. give him somewhere he can go and scream when he needs to or always take something with you that he can get distracted by when out. also if the time outs stop working, i'd check the positive parenting yahoo group. they give good advice and of course you take what you want from it...whatever works for you and your family.
Boys are different than girls. You might try using the robot angle and pretend he is a robot and you are giving commands. If he likes being a robot, try the different places where you can be quiet robot and walk quietly or noisy robot, like outdoors where you give him yelling, running commands. (Or maybe dinosaur can be the noisy one) He might like playing pretend. This worked with my grandson, I would say "robot, walk over to the room and pick up one toy" or whatever I wanted him to do.
It depends on your son and his likes. I would also advise reading Dr. James Dobson's book "Bringing up Boys" for insight into their heads. Its great.
As they say- this too shall pass! just keep talking to him calmly and repeating that "this" is the way people talk; and to keep it down even when playing or he might scare all the dinosaurs away! good luck1 God bless!
Kathy N.
I used to sit with my son when he first woke up or when he was mellow and play a listening game. I could hear a bird song outside the window, could he hear it? What could he hear? I could hear the water being turned on in the house , what could he hear? Maybe this learning to listen will give him a new game to play. Don't forget to add music to his life.
Talk to your son about indoor and outdoor voices. Practice them together being silly...it will crack him up to see you yelling and whispering. It will take time and consistency but if you keep reminding him it is indoor voice time (and give him lots of places to use his outdoor voice) this too shall pass!
I don't think it stops, you just tune it out after awhile...Of course now my two year old follows in my 4 yr old's footsteps so we have two screamers...skip the library and go to the park! :)
No really, I think that just being consistant is the key it sounds like you are doing that. Make it a game and see who can whisper the softest. Also tell him in a whisper that we use our inside voices inside. Maybe those will work! I hope so. Good luck, my prayers are with you...your 13 month old will be doing it soon :)
