04/19/2023
Does your child hit, scream, and/or bite to express their frustration or show you they are mad? As a parent, I know your knee-jerk reaction is to yell, “NO, Stop! We don’t do that!” Many times when we see these behaviors, a child is having a difficult time expressing their feelings and communication breakdowns are occurring. Targeting emotion words can help a child attach a word to a feeling and understand their feelings are valid.
When your child is screaming and hitting, say, “You feel mad, I hear you” or “You feel frustrated, I would be frustrated too.” (Be careful not to be condescending, just say it as a statement with a loving tone)
When your child is crying, say, “You are sad because you had to ____” or “You feel sad, I would be sad too”
When your child is happy/excited, label that emotion too! Say, “Wow you’re so excited!” Or “Yes, you are so happy!”
There are many emotion words you can label throughout the day. Acknowledging a child’s feelings by labeling them makes them feel validated. Over time, your child will begin to associate emotion word labels to their feelings. Your child may begin to use these words independently and decrease use of behaviors over time.
Are you modeling emotion words? Let me know below!
