Malika
Well-Known Member
My current concern is my son's aggressive or hoodlum-ish language, which he uses at the slightest opportunity. To put that in immediate context - it is all playground version, not anything more sinister than that, and all French because he doesn't know this language in English since I am basically his only source of English But it is not good and is surprising to hear coming out of a four year old's mouth. Yesterday, for example, I went out for the day with a friend and her 9 year old son to swim at a lake in the mountains. As always with J, there were good bits - times when he played normally and in friendly fashion with the other boy, and then some incidents where he was just.... well, difficult. When the other boy did something he didn't like a couple of times, he says things like "I don't like you!" or "Your not my friend any more" which of course does not go down well and creates some tension - my friend handled in skilfully on one occasion and just said to him very firmly but in a kind tone of voice "If you say things like that to A, he won't want to play with you any more or come out with you." J stood there, reflecting, looking sad and then said "Sorry" to the boy in a very contrite tone of voice... But there's also a kind of frequent use of playground swear words - well, are they even swear words, it's more like toilet words - and expressions that could be loosely translated as something like "I don't give a damn" and "****". It all makes him sound like a surly and reckless teenager... at 4, this kind of language is obviously inappropriate and I'd like him to stop it. Is that achievable?? I try "correcting" him at home, telling him that I don't like this kind of language and I and other people don't want to hear it, but it seems to have had limited if any success.
Is it a passing phase, I wonder, or is it just going to get worse and more graphic as he gets older... Really ugly language and phrases that it's not good to hear coming out of a child.
Is it a passing phase, I wonder, or is it just going to get worse and more graphic as he gets older... Really ugly language and phrases that it's not good to hear coming out of a child.