Is My Almost 2 Yr Old a Bully

i am a former preschool teacher and when a child seemed to be a "bully" it was because they wanted attention, even if they get alot. we used to give more attention to the "victim". when he pulls his sister, dont do anything more then tell him "look, you hurt your sister" then tell him thats not nice then give his sister ALOT of attention for her pain. "poor 'samantha', he hurt you really bad didnt he? that wasnt nice." give her lots of hugs. we also tried to give extra positive reinforcement for good things that the "bully" did. "i like the way you are playing nicely with your sister" i hope this helps. good luck!!
~C.

sounds like he's hitting his terrible 2's. those were always fun,not. maybe take away his favorite toy and tell him until he behaves he cant have it back. my son used to pinch,bite me and pull my hair and his sister's all the time. so to break his habit i would pinch,bite and pull his hair and say how do you like it. not hard though but hard enough to make my point and it worked for me. besides that i'm not sure. i don't know how you feel about giving that a try but it has helped me in the past to break my kids of the habit and he was around that age when he was doing it to me.

I feel for you. My son will be 2 in March and does the same thing. We have six other kids and the boys like to wrestle with him so that may be part of my problem. I did do the biting back thing and that stopped that part of it. But he still pulls hair for no apparent reason. They can be playing nice and you hear one of the girls scream "Peter that hurts". He thinks its funny. If you find anything that works please let me know.

My 2 1/2 year old daughter does the same thing. It could just be the age and some kids are just more aggressive than others. I hope it gets better soon. I wish I had some magic advice to give you, but I don't just wanted to let ya know I feel your frustration!

This is a tough situation. It sounds like your son has found that he does get a lot of attention from this behavior, even if it's negative attention, so he continues. The way he smiles and says he loves you could indicate that he somehow understands the buttons he's pushing in you. What I would do (and I'm sure many would disagree) is immeditely remove him from the situation when he acts this way, without getting angry or yelling or having a strong reaction (which he seems to love getting from you). Have a place you can put him, where there's nothing to play with or look at, and walk away. When he comes looking for you, put him back and walk away - no reaction. Do explain that this behavior is not okay and won't be tolerated, matter of factly, without yelling. Stay strong and be consistent - even when others are around.

Also, be sure you praise him when he's playing nicely and doing what he's supposed to. If you lavish him with attention for being good, he'll find less need for being bad.

I would also insist that the doctor run some tests to determine if he has an chemical imbalances or impulse control issues. If your doctor is unable or unwilling to do so, I'd find a doctor who is. This truly could be something your son cannot control on his own.

Good luck!
D.

some children are more active and agressive than others it is important to address this with your child, that the behavor is not ok, however its quite normal to be two in many cases is to be a bully.toddlers think everything is theirs, ever heard the toddler creed? also try giving him an exceptable outlet if he is being exceptionally rough try taking him outside or something. i was never into the whole gender thing before i had my son, but boys really will be boys and impusle control isnt very hiigh on the list in terms of toddler boy carecteristics, physical, active and loud maybe. if you have ever observed the toddler room at a daycare, playing nice and sharing isnt really a happening thing, its more like screams of MINE and pulling and pushing and restling and teachers running around trying to maintain damage control. ok anyway enough on this rant , keep pointing him in the right direction ,modeling positive behavior, not rewarding bad behavior with attention ... but your son sounds like a normal toddler boy to me