Bad Words!! Help!!

OMG! That brings back memories. My son used to say the Sh** word. Have to be honest at first it made us laugh. Becaue he did learn that from his grandma and me. In fact thats the only sh word he could say. I couldn't undestand that. What I did was say other sh words and when he tried it I gave him a reward. And when he said the bad sh word I ignored it and no reward. I think the reward was a snack he really liked. Soon he just stopped. He is now 12 and to this day he don't even use "SHUT UP". I taught him thats not a bad word, but not a nice word.

T.

He's got your number and he know's it. Which means he's smart emotionally. If he's not saying it at day care then he's doing it to get your attention. You are on the right track with ignoring it. You've got to deescalate it's importance. Remind him that you would rather he didn't say that in a low key way and then ignore it. Repition and consistancy are the key. It takes a lot of repition and consistancy with a 2 year old. At least he hasn't learned the F word yet.

We did a bit of hot sauce with my son too-it worked. We also explained that grown ups sometimes use that are bad for grown ups too but very bad for kids. It's hard to cut the habbit, I know. Our kids are quick to correct us now when we slip.

Why don't you explain the real meaning of the word - a "female dog." Then tell him he is not allowed to say the word whenever he feels like it. It has real meaning and may not be used in any other way.
M

My son did the same except with us it was ____@____.com First, with him, he liked getting a reaction out of us. Of course, the first time they say it we reacted and they're looking for that reaction.
I first told him (and continued to over the years) that when he says words like that, that it makes him really ugly and that is not the beautiful little boy I know. It has worked and worked well over the years. Even now at 12, he rarely to never curses (and I've had older kids tell me he won't even say them when I'm not around too)
After I spoke to him about it, from then on I stopped reacting completely. As if he said nothing at all too. I only reiterated "that word makes your face ugly when you say things like that" when a new one would (and new ones will) popped up. This all helped.
I forgot to add because it has been so long but some words required "the hot sauce treatment". When he wouldn't stop saying a word, I would put a dab of tabasco on his tongue. It won't hurt them like soap does but it works (until they develop a taste for it :)

I'm adding and editing here since I've been accused of being "sadistic" for using a dab of food product to correct a bad behavior. (really? sadistic? give me a break. Tabasco is FOOD. If I made him eat an olive-which he would tell you would be tortuous to him- would I be the Marquis de Sade? BTW, my son LOVES hot sauce now, puts it on a lot of his favorite foods)
First off, we didn't teach him the word he was using, another child at preschool did. He did not learn the word at home. We talked to him about it several times and he would continue to use it at the school just not at home around us but you can only get those phone calls at work so many times before you have to do something.
Again, tabasco sauce is food. It is not harmful, it will not make them sick and you don't pour it down their throats, just a slight dab on the end of the tongue.

My husband and I made an agreement a long time ago that we would take a more liberal approach to bad language. My only problem with bad language is when it is used to be unkind to other people or to offend others.

So as the years have progressed and our little ones roll out some doozies, we generally just tell them that some people don't like to hear that word, so it's not appropriate to use it around other people. We give them a more appropriate word to use in it's place. And leave it at that.

We don't have any repeat offenders, so I think this method has worked for us, so far (Our twins are going to be 5 soon.)

I remember my son starting that. I had to be firm with him and explain to him that those are adult words. But I also had to do it with a straight face because of the fact he was so little, it was kinda funny. We do our best to cut the swearing and for my husband it is more difficult, he's a truck driver and yes that rumor is true! One day I got a letter from his teacher that he said the F word because he was tagged out playing kick ball! I was so embarrassed!

Explaining to my son that something is adult thing seems to work best. However we didn't have to start this conversation till he was 5 so he understood it better then your 2 1/2 yr old would. That was also the age where we made sure that anything we did that was adult (certain movies, video games etc ) were now only done when he was either in bed or at school. Once in awhile, we end up watching a movie that does have few adult words in them and he will point out and say "oh he's naughty he said a bad word!" And he knows that what happens in a movie is make believe.

For your young child, I would keep reminding him not to say those words. He will learn. Giving him a time out or taking away a small toy for a swearing jar may help as well. He really doesn't understand what he is saying. But it doesn't excuse it. And now is a good time to nip it in the bud. Good luck!

In our house, potty talk and 'bad' words are treated the same way. If you want to say them, you may go - by yourself - to the bathroom, close the door, and have at it. No one ever takes me up on the offer (kids are 3 and 5.5). Without an audience reaction and the constant 'it's not okay to say those words or that's a bad word', most kids just lose interest. With both potty talk and 'bad' words, we just say 'those words hurts our ears' or 'we think those words are rude (or unkind) or gross...' and 'please go to the bathroom.' Then we walk away or start another conversation. It's really worked. They are just words. They only have power if we give them power. I tend to think that hot sauce and soap are too harsh a punishment for playing with the power of words.

Hi, I'm a local Nevadan too! Currently living in Pahrump, but used to live in Vegas/Henderson area.
Hmmm, without trying to be too harsh, I would have to say he obviously learned this at home. So best advice is stop cursing.... it's not fair to tell a child "do as I say, not as I do." So if you really want to get rid of that bad habit, then you're going to have to get rid of it yourself. I would be honest with him (sounds like he's intelligent even at 2) and tell him what you have said is wrong, mommy is going to stop and mommy needs you to stop saying it too! Make sure dad and everyone else in the house is on board too!

Best wishes,
C.~

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http://www.ToxicFreeFamily.net

Hi F., if a toddler is using a bad word, they hear that word from some where, ignoring negative behavior, tells a child it's ok to do that or say that, nd you can't say really tell a child at that age if you don't say that work you can have this, that's two many words, when he says the word, with your middle finger flick his cheek, ever time, it stings for a couple seconds, but leaves no lasting mark. J.