Does your child throw toys? 3 tips for the throwing phase.
Does your child throw toys? That can be very frustrating. Throwing toys is (unfortunately) normal. It's a way to explore the world. Of course, you can guide and support your child during this throwing phase. So here are three tips for when your child throws things.
- Set limits (lovingly)
- Refer to toys that are suitable
- Play throwing games regularly
Why does a child throw toys?
Throwing is a skill children learn, just like running, jumping, and climbing. It's also a way to learn and explore the world. For example, a baby will drop their plate on the floor to see what happens. And your toddler will want to know what sound it makes when they throw wooden blocks. Children are curious and learn by doing. And that includes throwing.
Of course, you don't have to sit idly by and watch your toddler throw things. A child in the throwing phase needs to learn a skill, but is also testing the boundaries. For this, I use tips 1 and 2 together.
Set limits (lovingly) and refer to toys that are suitable for throwing
You can say (yell if frustration is high): "Don't throw!" But what would happen if you gave your child a clearer, but more loving, boundary?
"I see you're throwing..., that's not allowed. It might break or you might hurt someone. Take the..., you can throw that."
It's immediately clear to a child that this isn't the intention. And you point to toys your child is allowed to throw. So you're actually satisfying your child's need to throw. At our house, we use beanbags for throwing. They don't bounce, and hitting you (usually) doesn't hurt. Of course, there are other toys that are also suitable.
Toys suitable for throwing indoors:
- Balloon
- Bean bags
- Cloth ball
- Large fabric dice
Play throwing games with your child
Tip 3: Play throwing games regularly to give your child the space to learn. Prefer not to do this indoors? Then play the throwing games outside. Want to play throwing games indoors? Then use one of the toys mentioned above. For example, we play with the rainbow beanbags for throwing games every day.
Need some inspiration? In this blog post, I'm sharing 10 beanbag throwing games .
