Originally Posted by Blackcat31:
I don't think it's a boy behavior either but it IS a 20 month old behavior.
I would be concerned about the 13 month old but not because I was afraid they are going to leave but because mom is concerned about her child.
I understand that she actually witnessed this but I also think she needs to understand that 99.9% of toddlers learn via physical interaction and that rough and gentle have NO meaning to a child under age 2.
They need to be taught this.
I would definitely have a discussion with the 20 month old's parents but I would not classify this as any more than normal.
A group of toddlers ARE going to be physical. A group of toddlers ARE going to push, pull, hit, and try to "fight" for what they want/need in whatever manner they know and right now at 13 and 20 months, all they know is physical. Communication skills are just emerging at that age and impulse control is virtually nil so having the right expectations about what will and won't happen is necessary for a parent when they enroll their child in GROUP care.
How many little ones do you have?
I mean no disrespect to your DH but was he actually watching the toddlers or was he doing multiple things at once so his eyes weren't actually on the 20 month old? Sometimes, that is the problem... honestly you really do have to have your eyes on a toddler at ALL times or provide them with an environment that doesn't allow for them to be physical with others.
While this is true, there are certainly children that take it to such an extreme that they have to have an extra caregiver or be the only/youngest/smallest in the group etc. For me, this is the same child that's been climbing out of the playpen since her 1st birthday, and she's out as fast as you can put her in. Some kids are just on the extreme side of physical. I do have a smaller baby in care, but she's almost a full year younger and happy to hang out in the baby corral, which my 18 month old has zero interest in. In the non baby corral group, this X-games kid is the smallest.
