14mo too young to understand "no"?

[Thesunalwayshinesontv]

I think I know the answer to this, but looking for hints and tips.

DD is my first child, so never done it before. From what I see around me, she's a really easy, happy baby: sleeps well, eats well, laughs a lot...no problems to report.

However, she does have a couple of habits that I would like her to break. The one I'm most interested in is learning not to throw her food on the floor. When she is beginning to get to the end of her meal, she will pick her food off the plate/table and throw it on the floor, or swipe her arm across the table and chuck everything on the floor. She refuses to be spoonfed now and eats whatever with her fingers (getting to grips with a fork at the moment, spoon still not happening), and actually eats well - slowly, but well. It's this 'misbehaving', if you can call it that at this age, that I want to discourage. She does it with other stuff too: whenever she is done with something - book, toy etc - she flings it on the floor.

I have tried giving her a firm 'no' and taking the food away, but she just found this funny. I think she enjoyed getting a reaction, as I am convinced she knew I didn't like it and deliberately did it anyway. So now I just ignore it, but it's been a few weeks now and there is no sign of her stopping!

Should I be firmer? I have seen on other threads people saying that the child should be removed from its high chair and made to pick up what it's dropped: how on earth do you get a 14mo to do that?! Mine would just look at me totally confused, and probably either lick the floor or kick the food about! Do I continue ignoring and let her grow out of it? Should I be firmer with 'disciplining'?

How much does a 14mo know, and what can I reasonably expect her to understand?

Thanks in advance!

I have a similar thing with my 12 mo. I simply take it as a cue that she's finished so when I see she's about to hit out, I quickly take the cup / bowl away and just say "finished". She just laughs if you put it back and does it again as it's clearly a fun game. If I don't catch it in time, I just say no, it doesn't go on the floor.

They do understand a lot more than you think so basic explanations are fine, but they don't really get the concept of being naughty so you can't punish them.

DD1 used to have a habit of hiding food down the side of her high chair, we tried to stop it but eventually decided to ignore it. Eventually she stopped as she just lost interest - same with throwing food, they have no concept of naughty at that age, so just need to limit the mess as best you can and they will grow out of it. Also try (if you want to say something about it) saying "keep the food on the plate" rather than "don't throw the food" as I read on here that saying what you do want them to do rather than what you don't puts the preferred action in their mind rather than the annoying one! It does seem to help

I would say she is the right age to learn what no means but to expect her to react is a different thing. I tended to use no for important things only like going near plug sockets, climbing dangerously, biting etc.

With the food thing dd did this and I woukd just take everythong away followed by oh thats not very nice throwing food on the floor, mummy and daddy don't throw food. I a nice voice saving my firm voice for the 'important thimgs.

Have you shown her how to put her plate to one side neatly when done...? she will struggle as she doesn't have the fine motor skills or mental capacity to do that yet.

So, when she's doing it just take the food away.

My 3 year old doesn't do it and I didn't tell him off when he did it as a baby, I just moved it. When It was obvious that he was finished, I'd say "all finished" to teach him the words. Then it went from there.
I do similar with my second who's 17 months. She can now lift her plate and move it away when she's done. But if I'm not quick enough to pay attention she will push it away and off the table!

Personally I think 14mo is way too young for discipline!
My about to turn 2yo pushes her plate away now (easier to do as at a booster seat at the main table) rather than throwing it on the floor. I can't remember when this changed but like others I just took that as a sign she was finished and took it away.
DD still throws away toys she's finished with sometimes and with others she will try and put them away. I might say 'careful, you'll break your toys' or something but I think she's still a bit young to know that and way too young to e doing something deliberately to misbehave.

I think this is her version of saying "I'm finished now, please take my plate away" which she clearly can't actually say.

OK, thanks everyone. I will continue to ignore and maybe be a bit quicker on the uptake when it starts becoming apparent she's had enough. I agree with saving the stern voice for things that really matter, and also agree about not constantly saying no.

And maybe I will get a dog so I don't have to continually wash the floor

We had this, and follow a policy of telling DD she's finished and taking away her food/highchair tray as soon as she deliberately throws food. Alongside this we helped her learn how to tell us she'd finished eating. The situation is improving significantly. We keep a "groundsheet" (plastic "table protector" from Dunelm) under her highchair anyway.
We don't make a big fuss about it and don't see it as punishment. IMO 14mo is old enough to be learning what is acceptable, and understand simple consequences providing they're consistent.

On a slightly different note I'm sure DD understood "no" by that age as we were constandly using it to stop her rooting in the kitchen bins. It didn't mean she obeys/remembers though - still doesn't.

we have this with our 14 mo. agree it is a sign she is done. we are teaching her to put her food neatly on the table if she doesn't want it. works when we are at home. she also helps put the food on her plate at the end of the meal if we ask her to. we do nice - please don't do that voice too. she does it less the more attention we pay to her..

my mother on the other hand tells her she's a naughty girl

And maybe I will get a dog so I don't have to continually wash the floor

Our dog's favourite place is underneath the high chair. DD has learnt that he comes to her when she holds her food out to him so we have to have hawk eyes. Luckily the dog understands "no" even if she doesn't!