5 year old still babyish

[rhrni]

My youngest is 5. She’s loving, kind and v sensitive.

She gets a lot of attention for being sensitive & she plays on this and acts all cute to get extra attention.

She talks in a baby voice all the time. She always needs to be hugged or picked up. She started shouting ‘Mamma, Dadda’ on sports day in front of everyone, and I realised then how different she is to the other kids there. The others aren’t anywhere near as babyish/childish. I know she likes to sit on her teachers lap etc, but actually it’s not really appropriate at that age.

She will be in Year 1 in September and this really needs to be knocked out of her.

I don’t know how to do this without hurting her feelings because she really is sensitive.

I think she knows that everyone warms to her and feels sorry for her when she acts like this, so continues to do so.

Any ideas about where I can begin?

Then why was she posting a scan asking if it was a boy or a girl baby a few weeks ago?

Children acting more babyish when their mother is pregnant is a common occurrence.

There is nothing wrong with ‘I think I saw a post saying you were pregnant, could this have anything to do with it?’

But the way you’ve gone about it isn’t entirely pleasant, it feels like you’re trying to catch the OP out. It isn’t just here; it’s all over MN tbh. Every time I see your name its a post with an unpleasant edge to it.

There’s a good chance the DD doesn’t know her mum is pregnant, if she is. Just stick to the topic and don’t bring other threads onto it, it really isn’t great form.

@ThisSillyFox sorry to hear that. Don’t want to go too off topic on this thread but there are some employers signed up to a scheme to encourage neurodiverse candidates at interviews. For example they can be given the interview questions in advance to help them prepare. I would recommend tech working too as there seems to be a greater acceptance of a different range of personalities.

There’s nothing unpleasant about saying do you think being pregnant has anything to do with your youngest child acting more babyish. It’s a very common pattern and the information certainly adds more context.

No, but the way you did it was. It was snide and a bit of a triumphant ‘gotcha.’

You can read between the lines if you want but you would be making it up.
I was simply offering up a possible explanation to OP’s question.

In the last company I worked for 30% of employees identified as neurodiverse and after we are received training about neurodiversity and creating a working environment supportive to those with neurodiversity a few more realised they probably had some neurodiversity. I'm in stem so there is a high prevalence but also greater awareness of others in most of the places I've worked.

Neurodiversity is a spectrum and some times it's about learning the skills in your informative years to help you find your place in the world and how you can manage life. There can be a difference in what is within someone's skillset at 5 to 15 to 25 and beyond.

I'm not neurodiverse but I have a life long mental health condition that started in primary school. I did not cope well with it up to the age of 19-21 from 21 to 25 my skillset to cope expanded massively and now I manage my condition and life and a way that is completely unimaginable to 17 year old me who could only be in a classroom for 15 minutes at a time and spent most of my time in crisis.

My 6yo often asks to pretend to be a baby or toddler - it’s part of understanding he’s changing as he grows, part of normal imaginative play. He also likes to pretend to be an injured or orphaned baby animal sometimes I have to rescue (esp at bath time). I help him dry, dress and clean teeth as well as apply bandages and provide bedding and soft toys.

These games/ behaviours i think are a safe way to be nurtured and looked after during the transition to being a more Independent child. Even without the stress of moving house, family illness, starting school, parental separation, having a new sibling, or more serious things, it’s perfectly normal.

Being over affectionate may not be so desirable to strangers and may be risky, but I can’t see an issue with the teacher unless they have raised it as a concern. Children develop differently and have different personalities.

i would encourage independence but also not make a huge deal of baby-ish behaviour, and be sure to baby her a little and show her lots of love. She is very little still, and feeling nurtured and safe will help her grow into a secure adult

@KiriG yes huge issue with the teacher (and friendships) as such children often compete to be the sole source of attention / have not yet been socialised to learn to take turns for attention, etc

Mine copied dreadful behaviours from Peppa Pig that made them terribly babyish.

Some of the behaviours could potentially be early Neurodiversity as ND children can seem less socially developed for their age. However, people encouraging babyish behaviour is not going to help ND or not! They need to help model appropriate behaviours and help her understand why we don't hug everyone. It's possible she gets comfort from stimming so is rocking and making odd noises (echolalia) so try and resolve what's causing it rather than telling her to stop. If you think it's for attention, just ignore it

If you think it's for attention, just ignore it

This is terrible advice. Children who are crying out for extra attention are almost always children whose needs aren't being met in some way. Figuring out why this is and how you can change it is a better idea than ignoring a small child.

Dont worry the other kids will bully it out of her and then she'll be really angry and aloof when she comes home from school.

Would it be possible to enrol her in any activities that might help encourage a bit more independence? Rainbows or beavers or something like that?