Biting in Reception

[ViaRia01]

I know this isn’t be the first time and it won’t be the last…. But this is my first child who started school in September and I don’t really know how common/ unusual this is or how seriously teachers will take it.

My son has been bitten at school several times by the same child. The child has also bitten two others as far as I am aware. I am not annoyed at the child, he’s still very young and my son isn’t being bullied by him, I think the child is just getting carried away or perhaps sometimes frustrated and this results in a bite. I’m working with my child to ensure he understands he can play with the child or he can choose to play elsewhere.

Anyway… does this all sound fairly typical of Reception year behaviour or is it actually something quite problematic that I need to continue to bring to the teachers’ attention.

Previous incidents have been raised to me by the teacher but today my son told me what had happened but the teacher did not mention it to me so I’m not quite sure what to make of it. My son could be lying although I don’t think he is. I think the obvious thing is to have a chat with the teacher, which I think I will do, but I’m also interested to hear thought on whether this is a 2/10 or 10/10 issue.

Biting can still be a thing at 4, but it is a serious incident and I would bring it up with the teacher every time, especially if you think she isn't aware.

It is fairly immature behaviour, often related to difficulty with communication. It used to be children would get speech and language therapy at 2 or 3 and this would either help so they wouldn't resort to biting any more or it would be clear they needed more support, whether that was accessed within mainstream or in a specialist setting. This doesn't happen any more, the 2-3yo struggling with behaviour/communication is left on a waiting list in limbo for a year or more, and the school just has to take them because officially they are deemed to need no more support than any other child 🤷‍♀️ it's bonkers. And not the teacher's fault, so do let them know you're not blaming them, just making them aware.

Often documentation of incidents like violence towards classmates can help the child get the support they need, which is why it's worth keeping the teacher informed.

Unusual in reception.

It's not that uncommon for children to still bite when frustrated at 4. But the school should be taking it very seriously and the fact it's happening repeatedly would indicate they are not supervising the child adequately.

The school should be taking it very seriously. Bite injuries can be pretty nasty with infections etc. Definitely raise repeatedly.

I would not be happy at all, repeated bite incidents on your 4yo since September! That's horrendous, poor boy.
Whichever child is responsible, he/she needs supervision.

It isn't typical at all to still be biting at 4.

It is much more common in 2 yr olds than people think.

However schools do have to accept and try to manage more and more children whose special needs make their behaviour challenging. It would appear that, if more than one child is being bitten on a regular basis, they have (at least one) child who they are struggling to manage.
However empathetic you are to the other child, their family, and the teacher, you do8 have a right to expect that your child isn't bitten in school.

I would speak to the school again and say that this is happening too often and you'd like to know what is being put in place to keep the other children safe.
Obviously they can't give you information about the 'biter' , but it can help their requests for funding and support for the child, if they record how many other children are being affected by that behaviour.

Thanks for replies. There is no communication issue as the child speaks clearly and confidently. So I suppose that leaves behavioural/ emotional/ neurodivergence as possibilities. Not that that is for me to speculate, I realise.

I will have a chat with the teacher and I agree with PP that it won’t be a complaint of criticism of the staff in any way. It is more about ensuring this recent incident is recorded if appropriate to do so.

I should add that none of the bite marks have been severe. Today’s didn’t even have a visible mark by the time my child came home (so I am wary that I have nothing other than my son’s word for it). It’s just that my son asked immediately for me to look in his contact book when we got home and seemed upset that his teacher didn’t record anything in there. So for me this is mostly about advocating for him, and also hoping to help staff get towards the root of the issue for the benefit of all children involved.

One thing though, as this is happening at break times, how closely can staff actually supervise children? PP mentioned that they were surprised the child could do this often and it shows a lack of adequate supervision but I presumed that at primary school, during break times etc., there is a certain amount of trust and expectation on the children, not necessarily 100% supervision. Can anyone shed any light on this aspect for me?

One thing though, as this is happening at break times, how closely can staff actually supervise children? PP mentioned that they were surprised the child could do this often and it shows a lack of adequate supervision but I presumed that at primary school, during break times etc., there is a certain amount of trust and expectation on the children, not necessarily 100% supervision. Can anyone shed any light on this aspect for me?

Generally, there is quite limited supervision at playtime, as it is literally the only time staff can go for a wee and clear up after one lesson and get the stuff out for the next lesson
BUT
when you have a known aggressor, the school do have an alternative to make 'reasonable adjustments' to keep everyone safe. Can be different options. If it is a child with a 1 - 1 support, then the 'freedom' of the playground is often a time that is more stressful for them and I'd direct their support to be with them at playtime and take their 10mins break from a lesson time when child is likely to be calmer (of course it is individual and not a blanket solution). Other options could be to have a smaller play area with fewer dc, and maybe more equipment for a child overwhelmed with the big playground - but of course it does need staffing, and might be difficult depending on the layout of the school / playground. Like most issue, there are not enough resources in schools, but I'd like to see them thinking about ways they might be able to help.

It really depends on the school and the layout of the playground. DS1's school the reception and nursery classes were together and they had their own sectioned off bit, so teachers or TAs could supervise all of it at once and be aware quickly of any altercations. Children aged 4 also typically cry loudly if they are bitten or otherwise hurt, so it's possible that if your son is not reacting the adults may not notice, it's different to nursery where each child will have a key worker who is expecting to have eyes on them every X minutes and will seek them out if they are quiet. Some schools have a joint playground for reception-Y3 though and it will be chaotic and busy as the DC aged 6+ tend to want to charge around and shout to let off steam.