Putting my kid in his place

Scott's a pretty mellow fellow. For the most part, he has a happy disposition, and he gets along well with people.

But he's also -- apparently -- decided to start tapping into his more-aggressive-I-am-going-to-take-no-prisoners-side.

I think age has a lot to do with it.
Scott moved to "Room 2" at daycare (for young toddlers 13-18 months) when he was barely 11 months old. He wasn't even walking. For a long time, he was the little guy. The small kid. The one who sort of had to deal with being bossed around.

And its that way outside of school too (big cousin Peyton, at the ripe age of 2) is not afraid to tell him where to sit, which bib to wear, which toy is hers and how and when to color.

And usually he listens and goes with the flow.

Until recently, that is. At 17-months, he can old his own. He's not the oldest kid in his class, but he's one of the biggest. And he's flexing his muscles. He's now apparently opening a can of whoop-ass on the other kids in his daycare room when they take his toys, or even play with a toy HE decides HE wants.

My mom went to pick him up the other day and he was standing in a crib, in a temporary "time out" for being aggressive. A follow-up conversation with his teachers yielded this note:

We've had a little trouble with Scott. He's being sort of an instigator. Pushing, taking toys. Hitting. And I don't know who started it, but now he and a couple of other kids think its fun to "sit" on the smaller children.

He may LOOK angelic, but behind that small is a bit of a hell-raiser.

Um. Okay. Getting into a little tug of war over a toy, I can handle. Sitting on smaller children and pinning them to the ground? Not cool.

Scott is a stubborn bugger, and time outs aren't always effective - he thinks they are a game. So we've employed a whole host of tactics to quell his sudden spate of bad behavior. They include:

1. Having his teachers take his prized Elmo toy when he walks in the room and put on a shelf. If he shares or behaves nicely, he gets it back as a reward.

2. Changing our tone of voice to "Mean, angry mommy//daddy sounds" when he does something bad. This is effective about half the time. The other 50 percent, he doesn't care.


3. The biggie: Temporary "day bumps" to Room 3 at daycare, where the kids are between 18 months and roughly 24 months old.

In other words: throwing the tiny fish into a pond of bigger, badder fish.

Yes, we've given our kid some comeuppance, 'cause now he's no longer long big boy on the block. Those toddlers are taller, faster, stronger, and can SIT ON HIM, if he they choose.

Not that I'd advocate that of course.

Postscript: Picked Scott up at 5:30 and he did GREAT in the bigger kid room. Slept on a cot (not in a crib) for the first time, and took a 2.5 hour nap! The teacher also told me, "Yeah, NONE of the kids picked on him. Sometimes, they go after the new, little ones, especially if they sense they are a little hesitant or scared or shy. But he acted like he'd been here forever and fit in great."


Yippee! And, most importantly, Scott didn't do any bullying either. Go Tank! Welcome to Room 3! Hopefully there will soon be a spot for you there permanently.