It can upset and alarm you when your child bites. Some experts say when children become frustrated because they haven’t yet learned to speak they resort to extreme measures like biting.

Biting can become a dangerous problem if it isn’t properly handled. It is extremely important for parents to learn how to deal with this and meet it head-on. The following tips will show you how to cope with your biting child:

Get to the Core of Your Child’s Anger – If your child bites in anger, ask yourself what might be causing this change of mood in your child. Have there been any changes in your child’s life lately? Is your child reacting in anger? If your child hasn’t been socialized with his children his age, this could be another cause of anger.

Stay Calm – If you are already dealing with a biting problem and have lost your cool with your child, don’t feel bad. Parents commonly overreact to child biting. However, shouting or spanking your child probably will not help the situation. Model the behavior you expect from your child. Take a deep breath and count to ten. When you are calm, you are better able to handle a bite incident.

Warn Her of the Dangers of Biting – Even though children are just learning to talk, they are old enough to understand pain. They are also old enough to understand cause and effect. In a calm, but firm voice, explain to your child why she shouldn’t bite. Let her know that biting hurts and she shouldn’t do it.

Teach Him To Use His Words – Some children start talking earlier than others. As your child grows and learns how to talk, teach him to use special words to express his feelings. “Tommy mad,” or “Suzie sad,” are just a couple of examples. If your child is biting but is still too young to speak, try using baby sign language instead. You can make up your own signs for pain, hurt, no, bad, etc.

Set Her Up for Success – If your child seems to have trouble socializing in certain situations, don’t place her in that situation. Give your child the best chance of success by placing her in a situation where there is no opportunity for trouble. By setting your child up for success, you can show her that she can play and socialize with other children without biting. As you see your child’s behavior improving, gradually introduce her to more challenging situations.

Praise Your Child – Calling attention to negative behavior and its consequences is important. Don’t forget to praise your child when he does well, though. Pointing out and rewarding positive actions will help your child to remember the desired behavior and reaction.

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