Biting Hurts
Sharing Information

I had the opportunity this morning to meet with the parents of a two year-old child who frequently bites while at childcare. For a variety of reasons, biting is one of the most challenging behaviors I get called about. Biting can be an emotionally charged issue which stirs strong emotions in adults. For the parents with whom I met, as with many parents of children who bite and the childcare providers who care for them, they are anxious to find a solution that will quickly remedy the problem. Often, they are experiencing feelings of frustration, guilt and embarassment associated with the child's behavior and their inability to affect positive change or to maintain a safe environment for the other children in their care. Biting often leaves visible marks on a child, which in turn, elicits strong feelings by the parents of the child who is victimized by a biter. Finding an angry-looking mouthed-shaped welt on your child's cheek will immediately envoke a viseral and instinctual response to do whatever it takes to protect your child. Don't be surprised if some parents demand that the biter be removed from childcare. Finally, biting can be a painful experience for a young child who depends on a safe and secure environment in which to growth and learn. Children may not only experience feelings of apprehension or fear regarding a child who bites, but may also generalize those feelings to the childcare environment and, ultimately, may lose trust in their caregivers to take care of their basic needs if they continue to experience repeated assaults.

Since biting behavior can be such an emotionally charged issue, communication is critical. For providers, this means being open and up-front with parents regarding the presence of this behavior in the classroom and to provide them with information regarding biting behavior. You can find information on the web to print-out and share with parents regarding biting, including www.preschooleducation.com and www.parent.ivillage.com. As with any behavior, parents and providers need to work together to effectively address biting, as well as to support one another in their efforts to address what, at times, can seem to be an intractable behavior. In additional posts, I will discuss biting and the challenges of working with two year-olds and explore a multi-faceted approach to addressing biting behavior.