Biting in nurseries tackled by developing emotional language so children express through words not actions

Encouraging children to develop their own emotional language can provide nursery staff with a way to help children express themselves through words instead of physical actions such as biting and scratching.

For adults, biting might seem like one of the worst things a person can do to hurt someone, however biting is a common behaviour in young children which is not often due to a child deliberately attempting to cause pain.

Biting can occur because of teething problems or be used by a child to test out boundaries with adults, and even child behaviour experts sometimes find the reason behind a child biting hard to uncover.

Jo Baranek, an early years lead advisor at the National Day Nurseries Association, has experienced children biting others in early years settings and believes biting is a natural part of a child’s development.

She said: “Biting can be quite common behaviour in nurseries as many children go through it as a stage of their development. It can happen through frustration, because they want something from another child or because they are teething.

“It can be a difficult situation for practitioners as often the reason for a child biting is unknown and in some cases a child can continue to bite for a long period of time.”

The range of reasons or trigger for biting can also depend on what age the child is. Babies up to the age of one may bite to explore the world around them because their mouths are one of the most developed areas of their body.

Sensitive subject

Although nursery workers may have regular experiences of children biting, parents can be very upset and distressed to find out their child has been involved in a biting incident.

Whether they are the parent of the child bitten or of the child biting, Ms Baranek encourages nurseries to reassure parents the problem is not their fault and wants all nurseries to have a detailed action plan in place to deal with biting incidences.

Ms Baranek said: “It is important to make it clear to the parents that it is not their fault and there is nothing wrong with their child. Managers need to make sure their staff are supported by an effective policy and the whole team discusses incidents at staff meetings and supervisions. No practitioner should be left to deal with it alone. “Parents need to be assured there are strategies in place to deal with cases of biting including sensory activities, biting rings, adequate resources and a stimulating calm and safe environment with adequate staff-to-child ratios.”

Teeth Are Not for Biting

When parent Elizabeth Verdick received a phone call from her local nursery telling her that her daughter had been bitten by another child, she was inspired to do something to discourage further biting in young children.

Ms Verdick said: “They said the bite hadn't drawn blood, but when I arrived that evening to pick her up, I could see two rings of teeth marks on her arm. That's how deep the bite went. Later on, when my son was a toddler, he used to sneak up when I wasn't looking and bite my knees.”

Her book ‘Teeth are not for biting’ has now been published and provides nurseries and parents with a resource to explain to children why they shouldn’t bite others.

The book sends a repetitive message to children that biting is wrong through the use of positive language to show children the best way to behave around each other.

She said: “The words are simple, the message is positive, and the illustrations are bright and colourful. Over time, they hear the repeated message ‘Teeth are not for biting. Ouch, biting hurts’ and even begin using it themselves among the children they know. I think it's important to use positive language with kids.”

Ms Verdick believes scolding or harsh words such as ‘no biting’ or ‘stop that’ are less effective than staying calm and using positive language and which gives the child an understanding of why their actions were wrong.

Support to express themselves

While some advice in the past has encouraged parents to bite their own child back, Ms Baranek of the NDNA does not agree and believes using positive language and a joined up approach by parents and nursery staff is the best way to teach children biting is wrong.

Helping children to develop a greater range of emotional vocabulary can minimise a child’s need to bite. If a child is biting out of frustration that they cannot express themselves adequately, nurseries and parents can teach children to describe their needs and problems through language instead of taking a physical approach such as biting, kicking or scratching.

She said: “Developing emotional language should be planned to support the biter in expressing themselves through words instead of actions, and picture cues and picture routines may also support them if they are having difficulties with communication. Having ‘calm down’ bags with sensory toys, quiet activities and story books will help to have some focused time with the child to support them to calm their frustrations if this is an underlying trigger. Some settings have a sensory or quiet room which supports this.

“If a child continues to bite, reflections and observations need to be carried out to try and distinguish a cause or common trend such as tiredness or frustration. Recording who the child is biting and when, will help staff support the child at these times and minimise the number of incidents.

“Ensuring children’s personal social and emotional development is fostered in the early years will provide children with positive role models, high self-esteem and self-confidence. A safe environment with appropriate and consistent boundaries provides children with the right foundations for the future.”

With research suggesting a quarter of young children will bite others at some stage of their early years development, many nurseries have a specific action plan in place to ensure appropriate action is taken. With a formal plan in place, nurseries are able to continue their commitment to educate parents and early years staff about the best way to respond and minimise biting in children.