I received the following question:

“What do you advise to help train my celebral palsy 20 month old who can’t verbalize but gets our attention by yelling.”

First, screaming and yelling is a common attribute of two year olds with or without a disability. Two year olds find it easy to scream and yell to get attention and it usually works. After awhile, parents usually become irratated with the screaming and do not know who to put a stop to it. Here are some tips for encouraging more positive behavior.

  • If your child can not verbalize yet, teach him a sign or other sound that he can use to get your attention. When he uses this sound or sign, respond immediately. When he screams ignore him (I know this is hard to do!).
  • Two year old are very smart and realize when a behavior is effective. Encourage good behavior and ignore bad behavior at this stage.
  • If the screaming evolves into a tantrum, let them know that you love them and when they are done screaming that you will give them a hug and then move away a few steps.
  • If the tantrum or screaming occurs in a situation where the child needs to be removed. Remove the child (to the car for example) and continue to ignore the behavior, letting them know that when they are finished they will be able to go back to the activity.
  • Try not to yell back. This only reinforces the behavior in the child.

I hope these tips are helpful!

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