The Biter

This week I had a horrible moment when I picked my toddler up from daycare. When I asked if C. had a good day, one of his teachers said "Yes, good day today, but C. is trying to bite the other kids." She said, "I have to watch him very closely."

My first thoughts: Oh no! My kid is the biter in the class!

On the one hand, I wasn't completely surprised. Especially when he's getting a new tooth, C. has bitten either me or his dad. Don't even ask me about breastfeeding and biting. My nipples were the first to thank me when we weaned. And we're very firm about telling him no. Which of course usually results in him crying, but we know that we need to be clear that biting is unacceptable. But I wasn't exactly shocked to hear that he has been trying to bite at school.

What was surprising to hear was that he is trying to bite others when he's mad or wants a toy. C. couldn't have more non-confrontational parents. We go out of our way to avoid conflict, probably to a fault. So for us to have a child that's asserting himself physically at daycare, well, it's kind of funny.

I do feel at a loss for what to do, besides apologize to the other parents in C's class. While I would love for my toddler to "use his words" and play nicely with others, frankly, I'm not sure how to go about instilling such behavior at this age. So, I will keep telling him "no biting," deal with the consequences, and hope he gets the picture, and all of his teeth, sooner rather than later.