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Behaviour/development

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3 year old boy obsessed with plugs, switches, hoover - but not toys!

3 replies

TravelMama1234 · 15/11/2021 13:24

So we have major problems with getting our 3 year old son (only child) to sit down and play / stay engaged with any toy related activity. He has little interest in all toys (jigsaws, Duplo, blocks, tool kits etc). If he had his way all he would do is play with the hoover, lamps, plugs, plug extension cables and sweep up with a broom.

When we go to visit family he is IMPOSSIBLE to deal with. He won't sit and play nicely, he just wants to run around opening and closing doors, turning light switches on and off and generally causing chaos. It's not like he's consciously being 'naughty', he just is magnetised by switches and plugs.

We are at a stage where we cannot take him anywhere. Be it restaurant, pub, family member's house, he just wants to be off everywhere and play with what he shouldn't.

He's been going to a childminder for 18 months and they think he's wonderful. He's been going to nursery for 6 months and they have expressed concern for the same reasons - he does not want to (or cannot for any reasonable time) engage in constructive play.

He's a really bright, happy, affectionate, energetic, confident, chatty boy. We don't think there's any sign of autism but we are concerned if this is normal behaviour or what we can do to steer him into being able to focus on a constructive activity?

Is this something he'll grow out of and eventually want to sit down and engage in something creative / useful / fun?

OP posts:
SleafordSods · 15/11/2021 18:52

If Nursery have expressed concern, what did they say?

TravelMama1234 · 15/11/2021 20:59

@SleafordSods Thanks for replying. They were initially concerned because he wasn't actually "doing anything". He kept going where he wasn't allowed (into the baby room), unplugging electrical things (lamps and the Alexa) and would push a broom around a lot.

He's settled in better but has good and bad days. He is outwardly confident and asks for what he wants, but he doesn't interact with the other children a lot and they're trying to support his interactions with them.

OP posts:
SleafordSods · 15/11/2021 21:10

I'm not trained but if he were mine I wouldn't discount ASD. The only child that behaved in a similar way to that in DDs class was eventually diagnosed with ASD but wasn't assessed until she was a teen as the DPs were very reluctant to even consider that she might not be neuro-typical.

It might be worth posting in the SN Section to see if anyone has experienced similar with their DC.

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