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Is this normal behaviour?!

2 replies

SunnyDays06 · 21/08/2010 23:51

Okay my DD who is 4 in 6 weeks is being a total nightmare and Im not sure whether to cry or scream! In general she is a bright, funny polite lovely little girl BUT shes turning into a brat! She has made friends with some children up the road and they all play togther everyday. Shes going through this thing that if they have one of her toys she either crys in a spoilt brattish way 'I had it first its mine' or gets really angry and snatches it from the other child ranting at them that its HERS! She has always been so so good with sharing I just dont know whats happened. Its not the kids cos they share/play so kind and lovely! Any advice on what to do?

Also, bedtime!! Arghhhhhh the B word! Weve always had the same routine bath/story/bed etc and it was great, worked wonderflly. But for about 6 months now its just like shes not tired! I put her to bed about half 7/8 and she goes to sleep about 11-12! She has an active life so its not as if she shouldnt be tired! Dont get me wrong she doesnt create a fuss about going to bed she just wont sleep, shell be awake playing, singing etc but will ask me for a drink or asking me questions in general, she is just not tired! Anyone else experianced this?! I just want her to have a sleep pattern like a normal child!

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Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
cordonbleugh · 22/08/2010 00:36

I've had this recently with my just turned 4 DD.

You need to get really tough with her. For example - when she cries because one of the other children has her toy, let her cry, encourage the other child to play with it and reiterate to your DD that nice playing means sharing. Also, obviously, when she does share, really praise her, and I mean over the top praise, make a huge deal out of it.

If she snatches and gets angry at the other child, take it off her, give it back to the other child, remover her and again, reiterate that if she wants to play with friends, she must share, if she can't she will be separated from them. And follow this through.

She'll soon get the message, until she does though, you will feel really mean and guilty, but it does work.

As for bedtime, carry on with the routine, once story etc is finished, stay with her for a few minutes and explain that it's now bed time.

Either get an egg timer and tell her she can read or play for ten minutes til the buzzer goes off and then it's straight to sleep, or don't set a limit, but tell her that you are going downstairs for mummy time, that it's fine for her to play, look at books, sing etc, as long as she stays in her room and only comes out to ask a question if it's really important.

When she does, if it's not important, give a short answer then say, goodnight, see you in the morning. Every time!

She IS tired, she's just pushing the boundaries. It will take a few nights of her messing around and you doing the above for her to get the message, but again, she will get the message and learn that you will not tolerate it.

She just needs to re-learn how to settle herself.

I'm at the stage now where after reading DD a story, I'll ask her if she wants to read for a bit, or go straight to sleep, if she says read, she does and then goes to sleep, if she says sleep, she does!

Does your DD go to nursery where she can learn sharing skill etc? 3 is still quite young and she may still be at the stage where they play alongside but not together iyswim?

onimolap · 22/08/2010 00:52

Yes, it is normal to push boundaries at this age. You'll need to decide where those boundaries are going to lie, and how you will make them stick.

I think Coudonbleugh talks a lot if sense about bedtime. You cannot force her to fall asleep, but you can train her to stay quietly in her room (this maximising the chances she'll drop off).

In terms of playing more co-operatively with the other children: have you spoken to their parents? Can you find an agreed line about how long a child can monopolise a toy before it'stime to change? Taking turns is a firm of sharing, even if play is still rather parallel. Frequent swopping might be easier for them all if they know they'll get lots of goes ( might be worth putting any particularly treasured toys away when there are other children: my DS was usually OK, but has real difficulty if anyone went near the toys he slept with).

It will pass, and a unified stance from all supervising adults will help it pass quicker.

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