Daycare.com Forum
Daycare Center and Family Home Forum>Spitting
Blackcat31 08:31 AM 03-01-2011
So how do all of you handle spitters? I have a dcg who is 22 months. Recently she has started spitting at the other kids for apparently no real reasons....no fighting or other frustrations. I think she is just trying to get a rise out of everyone......how do you guys deal with that type of behavior?
jen 11:03 AM 03-01-2011
I have this problem too...I have a 2 year old who blows very wet raspberries all the time...Mom and Dad think its cute...literally, puddles of spit at the table and on the floor, nothing has worked so far...
Little People 11:31 AM 03-01-2011
I would have them clean it up whether it is just on their face or if the spit hit the ground or if the spit was on another child. Then off to time out.
Blackcat31 11:42 AM 03-01-2011
The weird part is my other kids all seem to just cover their heads and bow down to this little girl although I do not know why... it reminds me of Nan's surrender to the baby thing...
anyway, this spitter will spit on the kids, hit their faces and heads and they all just cover up and wait til she is done with her "abuse"...I am so confused as to why the others don't stick up for themselves or say no or whatever.
They are all 3-5 years old and have all been here for a loooong time so I am not sure why they are all acting this way. I asked the 4 yr old dcg I have why she doesn't say anthing or stick up for herself and she just shrugged like she didn't know why either.
They will all say no or stick up for themselves if another kid is hitting or being mean but for some reason this little one seems to have all my other kids living in fear... future playground bully?!?! 
IDK, but I am running out of ideas.
I know mom and dad would NOT put up with it either and I know they would do whatever they needed to stop it but she doesn't do it at home. It seems as though she is doing it because she simply knows she can and that all the other kids do not like it. I have done the time out thing, removing her from the situation etc but she is a stubborn little one.....Grrrrr.
I LOVE determination as a character trait but NOT when I am trying to curb a bad behavior!!
anyway, this spitter will spit on the kids, hit their faces and heads and they all just cover up and wait til she is done with her "abuse"...I am so confused as to why the others don't stick up for themselves or say no or whatever.
They are all 3-5 years old and have all been here for a loooong time so I am not sure why they are all acting this way. I asked the 4 yr old dcg I have why she doesn't say anthing or stick up for herself and she just shrugged like she didn't know why either.
They will all say no or stick up for themselves if another kid is hitting or being mean but for some reason this little one seems to have all my other kids living in fear... future playground bully?!?! IDK, but I am running out of ideas.I know mom and dad would NOT put up with it either and I know they would do whatever they needed to stop it but she doesn't do it at home. It seems as though she is doing it because she simply knows she can and that all the other kids do not like it. I have done the time out thing, removing her from the situation etc but she is a stubborn little one.....Grrrrr.
I LOVE determination as a character trait but NOT when I am trying to curb a bad behavior!!
Sunny Day 02:15 PM 03-01-2011
I also have this problem, it drives me CRAZY! I also explain to them that spitting spreads germs and they can get sick because of spitting. I send them to time out every time they do it.
daycare 02:54 PM 03-01-2011
when my sister was little she would spit all the time.. she was 5 and knew better... I will never forget this because it shocked me to death...
we were at my grandparents and we could do no wrong in their eyes....or so I thought.. well my sister decided to spit on the floor in the kitchen because she did not want to eat her veggies.... my grandmother got out a bar of soap and made her eat it............she never spit ever again..not at home or any where else... Here I was thinking too that grandma will never punish me...after seeing that I learned that I was wrong....
I know that you cant do that and I personally never would...........I also remember a grade tacher making a boy fill a cup up with spit because he spit in the class room....
I know that i am not offering any really help here but just wanted to share....
we were at my grandparents and we could do no wrong in their eyes....or so I thought.. well my sister decided to spit on the floor in the kitchen because she did not want to eat her veggies.... my grandmother got out a bar of soap and made her eat it............she never spit ever again..not at home or any where else... Here I was thinking too that grandma will never punish me...after seeing that I learned that I was wrong....
I know that you cant do that and I personally never would...........I also remember a grade tacher making a boy fill a cup up with spit because he spit in the class room....
I know that i am not offering any really help here but just wanted to share....
momatheart 04:40 PM 03-01-2011
just tell the kids to come and sit by you when she does it. That would be like they are walking away and if they walk away enough maybe she will stop her audiance is not there anymore. It may take awhile but it may work.
Christian Mother 05:26 PM 03-01-2011
So funny you guys are talking about this bc I had this same problem a couple months ago with my 2 yr olds (almost 4 of them) all of them boys. I have this little guy who started spitting and it started bc he was copying if father spit a loogie..sp???
The first 3 wks or so they thought this was kind of cute..funny but then it was affecting my daycare and also my kids where coping him. So parents where questioning it. I would continue to tell this little guys parents it was a big problem and how I was dealing with it but he was still acting like it was ok...I would make him clean up the spit off the floor, on the wall, on him self or others. And def. time outs. So one day...again I tell DD that his son is continue to spit on other kids...and just as I was talking to him...right in front of me and his father he spit on the ground...his father grabbed him and popped his mouth...kind of gave him a pat on the mouth but with enough force to stun him.
He didn't cry but he sure knew that he was in trouble. From then on maybe he wouldn't do it here and there but nothing like before. All I had to mention is do I need to talk to daddy about spitting..and then off to time out. We would have a little talk about it. And he certainly knew what was coming if he didn't stop. Its been a couple of months now and no spitting no bubbles no nothing with saliva!! Yes!!
The first 3 wks or so they thought this was kind of cute..funny but then it was affecting my daycare and also my kids where coping him. So parents where questioning it. I would continue to tell this little guys parents it was a big problem and how I was dealing with it but he was still acting like it was ok...I would make him clean up the spit off the floor, on the wall, on him self or others. And def. time outs. So one day...again I tell DD that his son is continue to spit on other kids...and just as I was talking to him...right in front of me and his father he spit on the ground...his father grabbed him and popped his mouth...kind of gave him a pat on the mouth but with enough force to stun him.
He didn't cry but he sure knew that he was in trouble. From then on maybe he wouldn't do it here and there but nothing like before. All I had to mention is do I need to talk to daddy about spitting..and then off to time out. We would have a little talk about it. And he certainly knew what was coming if he didn't stop. Its been a couple of months now and no spitting no bubbles no nothing with saliva!! Yes!!
squareone 07:21 PM 03-01-2011
For the infants and toddlers I do the same thing that I do for the screamers. I take their own hand and cover their mouth with it and say "No spit!" The preschoolers that spit have to keep their hand over their mouth hold it there the whole time they are "reflecting" (it is our equivalent of time-out).