Teach a Toddler to Follow Directions Without Losing Your Sanity

It doesn't matter how many times I hear my friend tell her three year old daughter what to do, she still does not follow directions. I study children and the way that they learn mainly because I enjoy seeing them reach milestones in their life and being able to say that I helped create that or that I know someone probably had a hand in them reaching those milestones. For a toddler to follow directions it requires a skill that they may have not yet learned to master. There are the ups and downs that come with teaching a toddler to follow directions and there are times when even I want to pull out my hair and run in the house screaming but I have mastered on thing along with my child and this is what it takes to get a toddler to follow directions.

The terrible twos actually falls into the age group of between two and a half and three years of age. What is known as the terrible twos is when a child reaches the age of wanting to be dependant even though they don't know the boundaries in which they step. It is our job as parents to teach them those boundaries and to help them master the steps that they take in life. Getting a toddler to follow directions can be complicated but what in life isn't and this is one step in your journey through parenthood that you will enjoy once it is over.

I give them directions but they don't follow

Be careful of the directions that you give your child and remember that their attention span isn't that long so they may not remember the directions that you gave them. Using a harsh tone may make your child think that they are in serious trouble and might even make them want to rebel against what you told them to do. Some kids throw a tantrum at this age and others might just flat tell you no. One thing that I learned is that if I want my two year old to pick up the shirt that she threw on the floor and put it in the hamper then I must tell her how to do this step by step. For instance; I might say pick up the shirt and then wait for her to do this and then say for her to put it in the hamper. These directions allow them to think of one thing at a time instead of trying to remember three things to do such as saying for them to get over there and pick up the shirt and then throw it in the hamper.

My toddler still doesn't get the follow the directions rule

If your toddler doesn't seem to be able to follow the direction that you give him then simply help them to understand so that they know what to do. It is okay to get on your hands and knees and help them out. Helping a toddler doesn't mean that you do everything for them this just means that they need a little help every now and then.

My child throws a tantrum and won't follow directions

Again, you might need to help them understand that throwing a tantrum will get them nowhere and that they will still have to do what they were told. Just like in the previous section of this article, helping them out is not doing everything for them. If your toddler is throwing a tantrum and won't do what you tell them to do then tell them that you will help them but they still have to do it. After a while your toddler will start to understand that either way they are going to have to follow the directions that you gave them.

Pushing your limits

Once a child masters the skills of walking they will want to explore every aspect of their world and even the danger zones or what you may consider the danger zones. Your child might push your limits if they know that there are limits to push. There is a time and place for everything but you as a parent do not have to put up with the limit pushing but you do have to deal with it. There are many ways to deal with a toddler who refuses to follow directions and pushes your limits such as making them sit in a specific spot known as the time-out spot for a few minutes. Child psychologist have said in the past that a child should sit in time-out for one minute for every year of age so this would be from two to three minutes for a child this age. The recommended time-out time may not seem like a lot but to a child it can make a world of difference. There should always be one specific spot for time-out so that they will view it as an area that is specifically for when they didn't follow the rules; it is sort of like a jail to them. Once they are done with time-out you should talk to them in as few words as possible as to why they had to sit there and then give them the same directions again that you gave them before.