Some children have a habit of mimicking other people - they grimace, make faces, grimace. Some children clown about only in the circle of people close to them, being at home. Others arrange a similar circus in public, in the presence of strangers. Why are they doing that? What should parents do if children don't respond to requests to stop grimacing?
Why is the child grimacing?
1. According to psychologists, there are several reasons why a child often grimaces. One of them is the child's desire to assert himself. With his antics, the child is trying to draw attention to himself. He likes it when everyone around him looks at him. It seems to the child that he behaves boldly, brightly and effectively, for everyone's joy, and, in general, - oh! Moreover, dances with tambourines usually begin around the little clown, someone grumbles, someone laughs, someone gets angry - emotions are seething, life is boiling, and all this reinforces the importance of the child: I am, I am worthy of attention.
2. If a child considers himself to be not as interesting or talented as other children of his age, he may begin to grimace to stand out from them. The kid may not be confident in himself, consider himself worse than others, be shy and anxious - and then antics becomes a strange way to still ensure himself the necessary contact with people, as if through a protective mask.
3. When a toddler is prone to feelings of self-doubt, he too can clown around. Children who are faced with ridicule from peers about their external data or internal qualities (peers ridicule for being overweight, clumsiness, excessive modesty, or another quality that makes them different from others.) Often pose as jesters.
4. When the second child appears in the family, the older children lack care and attention, I feel jealous of the younger child, because the mother is more busy with the baby. Naturally, the eldest son or daughter feels resentment, which prompts them to use different methods in order to win mom's attention. One of these ways is antics, which is like a cry for help. The child seems to be shouting: "Mommy, well, finally, turn your attention to me!"
5. Clownery is often arranged by spoiled children, who were allowed to do everything in early childhood. Excessive parental care usually leads to the fact that their children do not know how to be independent, they are accustomed to being cared for as if they were babies. Reaching the age of 5-7 years, they continue to behave like little ones, not realizing their role in society. Antics is just a confirmation of the infantilism of spoiled children, they get used to the role of a baby, because they do not know that they can behave somehow differently.
6. Maladjustment in younger students. Among elementary school students, antics and buffoonery at school and at home often become one of the signs of school maladjustment when a child has difficulties with learning and communication in the classroom. This problem must be solved together with the teacher: find out how the child behaves at school, what difficulties he has in the educational process, in communication, ask the teacher to help the child establish contact with classmates (praise him, call him to the blackboard and give feasible assignments). And at home to do more with the child - and not only lessons, but also ordinary things, instilling in him all the same self-respect and giving him parental attention.
7. Forward to the stage! Last but not least, chances are you have an actor growing! And his "antics" is just a way to declare to the world about his rich and subtle emotional world, which is bursting out. If you suspect your child has a penchant for performing arts, help him develop in this direction and create a niche in which all the “posturing” will be invested: theater studio or dance, animation studio, fine arts or puppet shows. The main thing is for the baby to feel at ease. Then episodic antics will acquire grace and moderation.
What can parents do if the child is grimacing?
1. Parents need to help their children get rid of the grimace habit as quickly as possible before it becomes a character trait. First you need to try to develop a sense of confidence in your child.... This can be done by providing the child with more opportunities where he could show independence. Trust him with small assignments - ask him to clear the table, collect toys, make the bed. When a baby himself undertakes to do something, do not interfere. Be more careful - sometimes parents just don't notice some small things that the child has done himself. Be sure to express your approval for the efforts of the children, praise them for any accomplished work to increase their self-esteem.
2. Help your child find himself in something, self-actualize... Invite him to dance, exercise, paint, or collect. If he has a good memory, use this talent. Let the child remember new interesting facts about the world around him, learn poetry. It is important that the baby is passionate about the process, strives to achieve some results. Mastering unusual skills will allow your child to stand out from their peers. Hang on to whatever your kids do well, develop these skills, and praise them. Feeling parental support and approval, the child can easily cope with their insecurities.
3. To help children get rid of an unpleasant habit, parents need to learn not to pay attention to how they grimace. This is not easy, but effective, because children grimace and make faces precisely in order to provoke some kind of reaction from their relatives (in no case should the child's antics be supported with attention, laughter or interest, shouting and cursing). If it is not there, then there is no point in continuing the clowning. Remember, when you scream, swear, demanding to stop the circus, you are showing the very reaction or response that the child expects.
Don't try to fight it. Just ignore his antics. The more it annoys you, the more he will grimace, but when he sees that you are not interested in this, he will calm down. The result will certainly not be instantaneous, but you should try not to respond to his actions for several days. If it's too infuriating, take a deep breath and count to ten. And do not scold the child, maybe he will grow up as an artist 🙂
4. When a son or daughter begins to grimace, it is better to calmly explain to them that this activity is completely useless. Tell your child that you were just going to do an interesting thing with him, so you are waiting for him to finish clowning.
5. When a baby grimaces, he does not see himself from the outside. Give him a chance to look at himself. Ask him to portray some kind of grimace in front of the mirror, drawing his attention to how stupid and ugly he looks at the same time. Draw a caricature of a grimace. When trying to give advice, do it in a positive way, pay attention to the good things in the child. For example, like this: “You are a kind and smart boy, I like it. But I don't like it when you grimace. " Words: "Stop grimacing now!" will be less effective than those that are praised at the beginning.
By following the advice above, parents will soon notice that their child is making faces and mimics less and less. He realizes that it is much easier to draw attention to himself by doing worthwhile and useful things.
