Time for Independence (and NOISE!) with Toddlers

Toddlers playing music (banging!) with spoons, rocks and bark.

There's not much toddlers enjoy more than banging on things and making noise!  Whether it is banging hands on the table, banging spoons against pots and pans, banging two blocks together or even banging the door closed, if it can make an interesting noise, toddlers will figure it out!

At the YCCF, we understand that toddlers need to bang and make noise, so we work to find creative solutions to allow them to do so.  One of those ways is depicted here-- a simple piece of plywood with pots, pans and colanders from Goodwill attached.  It's outdoors-- so they can bang all they want! 

Why do toddlers need to bang? Developmentally, toddlers are busy learning that they are separate individuals who are able to make things happen because they want them to happen.  (Or prevent things from happening, as you know if you've tried to get your toddler to do something she didn't want to do.)  While it is extremely frustrating at times, (OK, often!) it is vitally important for toddlers to learn that they can choose to make an impact on the world.  If they don't, we run the risk of instilling in them self-doubt instead of autonomy.  Children in the toddler years choose to show their independence not only by making a joyful (loud) noise, but also by refusing to wear the nice shirt you picked out, wanting to walk instead of be carried, refusing the nice broccoli you chose for dinner or insisting that their shoes belong on the wrong feet (right where they put them.)

How do we support this learning at school? Sometimes, toddlers want to do things that we can't allow because it puts them in danger or is unhealthy (like refusing to have a dirty diaper changed.) Whenever we can allow them to make their own choices, though, we do.  So when toddlers want to bang and make noise, which is often, we learn to make the most of it! In the photo above, not only are children banging, making noise and having fun, but they're also engaged in scientific inquiry.  "What noise does the pot make if I bang with the wooden spoon?  What noise does it make if I bang with a rock?  How about this bark?"  Children learn that their actions have different outcomes, based on how hard they bang or how soft or what they use.  This increased understanding of their ability to control themselves and impact the world also moves them toward a really important toddler milestone-- toilet training! (Toilet training is all about toddler autonomy.)

How can you support this learning at home? Besides letting them bang away (stock up on the ibuprofen), consider other ways you can give your toddler choices at home.  If they insist on wearing their pajamas to the store, maybe that's OK.  If it's not, offer them two different choices of shirts to wear:  "Do you want to wear the red shirt with the yellow stripes, or the black shirt with the white polka dots?" Offering that simple choice (don't give too many options!) may fulfill your toddler's desire to be in charge.  If banging on the metal pots with the metal spoon is just unbearable at your house, your toddler may be just as happy banging on your plastic colander with a plastic ladle.  Ultimately, finding some safe ways for your toddler to make some small "noise" in the world (literally and figuratively,) you can help your toddler grow into the autonomous, confident child you hope she'll be.