My 3 Year Old Son Is Having a Terrible Keeping His Hands to Himself.

Hi J.!
My baby is 2 1/2. He gets excited and likes to play and will hit his older siblings to play. He doesn't always respond when we tell him to do "gentle touches" but we've started telling him to do "tickle tickle" instead. He responds to this, I think, because he still gets to play and gets a positive reaction out whoever he's trying to play with. Sometimes a simple distraction works too. "Let's jump instead" or "hey, where is your....? I'm going to get it before you!"
Good luck.

J.

Hi
I understand what you are going though I have a 4 year old boy myself. He does the same exact thing that your son is doing. We have a 18 month old daughter and he plays very rough with her. We discipline him too with going to his room until he can be more nice. But I am not sure but I think it maybe a boy thing. I hope he outgrows it soon. well good luck we both need it.
Sorry not much help but wanted to let you know your not alone.

Hi J., im not so sure how to help, but you just helped me. i have an 18month old boy, plus 2 much older siblings, so they play rough, but im due any minute now (im 37 weeks pregnant), with another boy. And i have been so worried about his roughness, but at least now i know he's not alone. Nothing works now, but he is still younger than most other boys mentioned here, so im going to really try prevention now, ex. not allow the older ones to play so rough with him, hopefully it may slow it down some. But if not, its ok, ill be supervising, as much as possible, lol. But thanks for asking the question i might have been asking soon myself, it has made it so i can at least know it before hand that we are not alone here!!

xoxoxoxo G.

This is very common for a child this age. One thing that you could do is to teach an alternative behavior.Show him how to express excitement in a different way. I taught my kids the "popcorn machine" jumping up and down in a very silly way but our hands are always "put away" ! I have two boys and take care of a 4 year old. Hope it works!

This was a difficult age for my son as well. It is important to stay consistent with him. If he seems like he is getting into that mode where he looks as though he might get carried away, that is the perfect time to remind him of how to play properly. I know it seems to you like he is unphased by the punishments, but it gets through to them, it just takes a long time to brake the hbbit. Good luck.