- Parents often worry about aggressive behavior in children.
- Responding calmly, without anger, is crucial—anger only reinforces negative responses.
- Aggressive actions may stem from children not knowing how to express themselves.
- Redirecting behaviors (e.g., turning throwing into a game of catch) helps channel energy positively.
- Daily fun activities and positive attention reduce aggressive tendencies.
- Consistently sharing joyful moments ensures discipline doesn’t overshadow the parent-child relationship.
Understanding Aggression in Children
Aggression in children can be caused by an inability to communicate an emotion or a need. Making sure that you clearly respond without anger is really important because that only teaches them to continue to respond in that way.
Nina Sand-Loud, MD, Child Development
