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What do you do if your toddler steals a child’s toy on a playdate? Has a tantrum at the supermarket? Gets pushed by a kid at the park?
These are common behaviors for toddlers and preschoolers who are still learning how to act around others and regulate their emotions. But for many parents, these moments are a struggle to manage — especially when they happen outside the routine and comfort of home.
“We sometimes feel on the spot when we’re in public,” says Celina Benavides, a developmental psychologist and a professor at Oxnard College in California. “We feel the judgmental eyes from other people, and that can shape how we parent and how children might respond to us.”
So how should parents address their kid’s challenging behavior in public? Benavides answers five questions from NPR listeners. And she shares what they can do to prevent these scenarios from happening in the future.