No Clue..Why doesn't time out work?

My son in two. Often he begins to get out of control for no reason. He hits and bites his mother. We put him in his room and tell him he can come meet us when he stops crying. He stays in his room for 30 to 45 min. crying and screaming. His spells last about 1 hour at a time. Nothing seems to work with him.

Dr Maud Answers:

Distraction is a good strategy. Stop the full blown tantrum before it starts. Find something else to do.

If using Time Out, remember the '3 strikes and you're out approach' - ie. don't forget the warnings.

Only put your grandson in his room for 2 minutes (1 minute per year of age). You shouldn't let him out at the height of a tantrum but listen for the moment he settles down a bit. All children have a pause to breathe and when things are a bit quieter at this time, you can finish "time out".

Your grandson doesn't have to apologize when he comes out of time out but he just has to be reasonable. If not, he gets further warnings about time out and if he needs 3 warnings, it's back to time out for another 2 minutes (or until he settles a bit if he's still in the middle of a tantrum).

If you are consistent, then this behavior will cease. I suspect at the moment that everyone doesn't react in the same way.

If you prefer to listen than read information, then you can hear about great ways to change your child's behavior and avoid the terrible two's with an audio course called "Talking to Toddlers" - click here. The audio course not only gives strategies for dealing with a willful two year old, but it gives strategies for communicating more effectively with all ages.

All the best.