How would you have handled it?

[Thatsnotapotato]

Had a 'first-time-in-this-situation' today and didn't know how to react/handle it. But I'd like to know for next time if I should 'do' something?! Or what others would do?

At local park with my two DCs (3 and 2). DC2 falls over into a puddle, I go to assist as she's soaked through. Suddenly hear DC1 crying in the sandpit, pointing at an older boy (7 or 8 ish) saying that the older boy threw sand in his face.

Older boy looks at me very sheepishly and runs to his Mum and hides behind her legs (Mum is facing the other way and unaware of what may or may not have happened). I go over to my DC1 who is scraping sand off his face and ask him to tell me again what happened. I asked if it was on purpose or an accident (he understands these terms) and he said 'on purpose'. We had a cuddle and I asked if he felt okay, checked he was alright, and that, if he did do it on purpose, sometimes other people could be unkind and that wasn't nice. Older boy is still looking very sheepish and looking through his Mum's legs at us.

DC1 was happy again soon enough, BUT I'm now wondering if I should have done something in regard to the other boy? I don't think I should have, as I didn't see anything happen, but I also don't want my DCs to grow up thinking people can be unkind and just get away with it (appreciate that's a stretch of a message but I'm an over-thinker).

Would you have done anything differently?

Hmm. Hindsight is a wonderful thing but I would probably have just told the other kid it's not nice to throw sand in faces. In my best passive aggressive voice

I would imagine he was younger than you thought if he was cowering between his mum's legs. You don't know what happened. I would always assume my child had some part to play in either antogonising inadvertently or a game getting out of hand. I always just say if someone isn't playing nicely, best to stay away from them.

I don't think you could. If you don't see it and can't respond immediately it is nearly impossible to comment. It sounds as if the little boy knew that he was in the wrong.

No, I would have done the same.

I wouldn't have said anything but would have been thinking 'fucking little shit'!

I have. I problem telling off other people's children but I'd have done the same as you.

It would be different if the child had continued to throw the sand (and I have told off in that situation) but the child ran away so the immediate issue was resolved.

Again it would be different if you had identified this boy as someone who had done this to your child multiple times, in that case I'd politely approach the Mum.

The purpose of telling off someone else's child is generally to stop them doing something not to teach your own child about consequences (he'll learn that from suffering through his own punishments!)

"I have no problem" ^^