At Horizon Education Centers, our preschool program not only prepares children academically for kindergarten, we also prepare them socially. And there are times when this academic and the social preparation intersect.
Parents are primed to expect the terrible twos and we've discussed how this phase can start at any time during the second year of life, so a child may start to show signs of this phase as the approach their second birthday. However, recent research suggests that if your child has the kind of tantrums associated with this phase once they are past the age for it, it is possible that your child will need further help in developing his or her communication skills.
In “Toddlers' Early Language Skills May Influence Later Anger Management”, Time.com turned to experts who have studied the connection between communication skills that kids develop as toddlers and the emotional development that occurs during early childhood. It is easy for a possibly stressed parent to forget that a young child may act out not because they want to cause annoyance but because he or she really doesn't have the capacity to communicate what is on his or her mind.
Researchers found that children with better language and communication skills had an easier time regulating their emotions and were more likely to find ways to amuse themselves when they were no toys available. Children whose communication skills need more work tended to act out, perhaps because they were unable to express themselves fully.
As a parent, you can help your child develop his or her vocabulary and communication skills by reading, playing word games, and engaging your child in conversation.
