5YO cannot do anything by himself anymore

[Anonymous]

My 5YO has never really been capable of playing by himself, but it's starting to get REALLY bad now that we're all home 24-7. He literally cried and tantrumed this morning because 3YO DS2 left the room and wasn't watching him play bowling on Wii. Then I played a board game with him and told him I had to go do something and he lost his mind that he didn't want to color by himself. He's constantly crying/whining for attention - ANY attention - and it's getting really hard to manage. If he's left alone, he knows that bugging his brother will result in a reaction so he just bugs him. We've tried 1-2-3 Magic, we do positive praise when he does something on his own, etc. But it just seems to be getting worse. It's like suggesting things for him to do by himself are now viewed by him as punishments (because he's "left all alone!") so he just rejects all of it.

HELP?!

[Anonymous]

I'm sure it's super frustrating to have an extra clingy kid. My 7 year old is doing a bit of this too. But think about it- their whole world has been turned upside down recently. Our kids don't understand why they can't see their friends, why they can't go to their favorite playground, etc. This is your child expressing his GRIEF. Give him extra attention, more than you might normally, call your friends or family members and have them play a virtual game or just talk, see if your child's teacher can check in with him. Maybe a very specific daily schedule will give your child comfort. I remember my son would completely fall apart when he was that age and didn't have a schedule. If you have specific times of day when you need your son to play on his own, write them down on your schedule and then he can mentally prepare. Maybe think of some special rewards- dessert, screen time, a sticker or small toy?- that he can work towards if he follows his schedule. Give him some daily chores that will make him feel purposeful and helpful. Hope these ideas help!

[Anonymous]

We gave DC 6 a personal computer, and only hear from him when he get hungry or wants "fresh water". It's awesome.The kid is quiet for 12 hours a day. He can read messages and write full sentences to his buddies in English and Spanish. I think he plays Roblox.

[Anonymous]

It is totally normal for kids to regress during stressful times. My teenager and all her friends are playing video games they played in late elementary school.

[Anonymous]

He's 5, that's normal.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We gave DC 6 a personal computer, and only hear from him when he get hungry or wants "fresh water". It's awesome.The kid is quiet for 12 hours a day. He can read messages and write full sentences to his buddies in English and Spanish. I think he plays Roblox.

Seriously?!? You’re letting your 6 old sit in front of a computer for 12 hours a day?!? Hope this is a troll post.

[Anonymous]

Mine either. It’s exhausting.

[Anonymous]

My kid is 10 and still like this! He’s also a first born. A big attention hog. I agree with the visual schedule idea and rewards.

[Anonymous]

Same here, OP. It's exhausting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I'm sure it's super frustrating to have an extra clingy kid. My 7 year old is doing a bit of this too. But think about it- their whole world has been turned upside down recently. Our kids don't understand why they can't see their friends, why they can't go to their favorite playground, etc. This is your child expressing his GRIEF. Give him extra attention, more than you might normally, call your friends or family members and have them play a virtual game or just talk, see if your child's teacher can check in with him. Maybe a very specific daily schedule will give your child comfort. I remember my son would completely fall apart when he was that age and didn't have a schedule. If you have specific times of day when you need your son to play on his own, write them down on your schedule and then he can mentally prepare. Maybe think of some special rewards- dessert, screen time, a sticker or small toy?- that he can work towards if he follows his schedule. Give him some daily chores that will make him feel purposeful and helpful. Hope these ideas help!

Agree with this.

Everything need not be "solved" by punishments nor rewards.

[Anonymous]

Same boat. I’ve told him he has to play on his own for 10 min and I set a timer. He gets engrossed and forgets about the timer (which I did not set).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We gave DC 6 a personal computer, and only hear from him when he get hungry or wants "fresh water". It's awesome.The kid is quiet for 12 hours a day. He can read messages and write full sentences to his buddies in English and Spanish. I think he plays Roblox.

Seriously?!? You’re letting your 6 old sit in front of a computer for 12 hours a day?!? Hope this is a troll post.

I think this was an amusing post. Don't take it seriously.