It is normal for toddlers to throw tantrums, but how much is too much?  Tantrums are a normal part of development.  It’s how your child communicates they are unhappy with something.  However, there are varying levels of tantrums, and knowing the difference between normal levels and excessive can help you to work better with your child.

 

According to http://www.justanormalmummy.com/2014/04/the-tantrum-cross-code-five-levels-of.html, there are several different kinds of tantrums.  Here they are as follows:

 

  1. Standard Tantrum

This is a typical tantrum and often happens at home with little or no damage.  Their bottom lip may pop out, they may cry a little, and avoid eye contact.

 

  1. The Body Flop

This tantrum seems to happen in public and at home.  In essence, they refuse to do anything you ask, and when you try to pick them up, they turn into a wet noodle.  While slightly more embarrassing than the standard tantrum, other parents seem to understand and won’t always hold it against you!

 

  1. The Angry Crab

More often than not, this move is done in public.  They absolutely refuse to do anything they tell you – they will try to run away, break free of your grip, cry or scream loudly and may even try to hit or kick you.

 

  1. The Toddler Tornado

This is where they throw and break things, scream and cry, and may even hurt your household pets as a way of rebelling.  Some children could take a long time to calm down from this.  Either way, it isn’t pretty, be it in public or at home…or worse, an aeroplane!

 

To decipher whether you child has a normal amount of tantrums or if they are tetering on an unhealthy amount of tantrums, Lauren Wakschlag of Northwestern University in Chicago made a “tantrum-scale” to help you decipher whether your child displays a normal amount of tantrums or if it is indeed excessive.

 

 

How to Tell if Your Child is Throwing Too Many Tantrums

 

Answer the following questions with “never in the past month”, “less than once per week”, “1-3 days per week”, “4-6 days of the week”, “every day of the week”, or “many times each day”:

 

How often does your child:

  1. Have a temper tantrum;
  2. Lose temper or have a tantrum during daily routines such as bedtime or mealtime;
  3. Stamp feet or hold breath during a tantrum;
  4. Have a tantrum that lasts more than 5 minutes;
  5. Keep on having a tantrum even when you tried to calm him/her down;
  6. Break or destroy things during a tantrum;
  7. Have a tantrum until exhausted;
  8. Hit, bite, or kick during a tantrum;
  9. Act irritably;
  10. Lose temper or have a tantrum with a parent;
  11. Lose temper or have a tantrum with other adults;
  12. Lose temper or have a tantrum when frustrated, angry or upset;
  13. Lose temper or have a tantrum when tired, hungry, or sick;
  14. Lose temper or have a tantrum to get something he/she wants;
  15. Lose temper or have a tantrum “out of the blue” or for no clear reason;
  16. Become frustrated easily;
  17. Yell angrily at someone;
  18. Have difficulty calming down when angry;
  19. Become angry very quickly;
  20. Get extremely angry;
  21. Have a hot or explosive temper;
  22. Stay angry for a long time (longer in minutes than their actual age).

 

Keep in mind, some of the above-mentioned tantrums may happen 1-3 days per week, and that doesn’t necessarily mean your kiddo is having an abnormal amount of tantrums.  Check out the grading scale here to discover whether or not your child has a normal or abnormal amount of tantrums!

 

About Little Human Scholars School in PJ

Little Human Scholars is an all-in-one childcare solution.  It is a preschool, playschool, kindergarten, nursery and full-day daycare centre (with extended hours) located in the heart of PJ.

 

In fact, the location is one of the things which makes Little Human Scholars so sought after – it is conveniently nestled near Jalan Gasing, University hospital, PJ Old town, PJ New town, Jaya One, Jaya33, and the PJ IT Mall.

 

The best part is LHS has premiere services many other schools in PJ don’t offer such as full-day daycare with extended hours, CCTV access for parents, and a nifty little phone app called Toddlytic which provides parents with automatic updates on their child’s development, behaviour and health checks.

 

With full-time guards always present at each of their locations, access to CCTV (which is in every room except the office, bathroom and kitchen areas), and very strict pick-up and drop-off rules, Little Human Scholars treats every child who walks into its hallways as one of their own children!

 

This place has it all:  location, safety, health, IGSCE curriculum and play-based learning.  What more could you ask for?  Did I mention they also have transportation services and offer meal plans for students?  It doesn’t get any better than that.

 

If you are interested in a tour of one of our centres (that’s right, there’s more than one), all you need to do is fill out the form here or call +6017-7303-025 and an LHS administrative staff will get back with you shortly!

 

Cheers,

 

Jana Moreno