Communicating Feelings
For some odd reason, whenever I receive a referral regarding biting behavior, the image of Jaws comes to mind. No, not a Great White Shark but the 7 foot tall human nemesis in the James Bond movies; The Spy Who Loved Me and Moonraker. You know, the big guy with the metal teeth that could bite through just about anything and with a face only a mother could love. Perhaps, I conjure up his image because I feel that the typical toddler or two year-old who bites often gives me as much of a challenge as Jaws did with 007.
Two years-olds are full of themselves. They are so full of themselves that they have difficulty seeing beyond their own self-centered wants and needs, are full of energy, full of new skills and emerging competencies, as well as full of intense feelings that often overwhelm their still limited abilities. For example, if I am full of frustration due to a situation that occurs in my childcare environment and I haven't yet learned the expressive language skills with which to articulate those feelings or to communicate my wants or needs, I will rely on my limited repertoire of behavioral skills to express myself. Biting is about as basic a form of communication that you will find. As far as social skills, such as being able to follow guidelines that moderate interactions with others, such as sharing or taking turns or, emotional skills, such as being able regulate feelings or empathizing with others, two year-olds...well, I won't even go there.
Trying to discern what the child is communicating through biting behavior may not be clear, but providers need to explore what factors may be contributing to the behavior. These factors may be found both within the childcare environment, as well as outside of the childcare environment. Again, communication between providers and parents will help identify possible triggers to the child's biting and help determine a successful outcome to the behavior. More on triggers in my next post.
