Skip to main content
FamilyEducation
FamilyEducation
Family Education

FE-Menu

  • Pregnancy
    • <blank>
      • Pregnancy Tracker
      • Trying to Conceive
      • Signs & Symptoms
      • Pregnancy Health
    • <blank>
      • Baby Names
      • High Risk Pregnancies
      • Preparing for Baby
    • <blank>
      • Concerns & Complications
      • Labor & Delivery
      • Postpartum
  • Baby Names
    • <blank>
      • Browse All Baby Names (A-Z)
      • Top Names for Boys
      • Top Names for Girls
      • Baby Name Generator
    • <blank>
      • Baby Name Lists & Ideas
      • First Names By Origin
      • Browse All Last Names (A-Z)
      • Last Names by Origin
  • Babies
    • <blank>
      • Caring For Your Baby
      • Baby's Health
      • Feeding Your Baby
    • <blank>
      • Your Baby and Sleep
      • Baby's Growth & Development
      • Baby Hygiene
    • <blank>
      • Baby Safety
      • Baby Products
    • <blank>
  • Toddlers
    • <blank>
      • Toddler Growth and Development
    • <blank>
      • Toddler Behavior and Discipline
    • <blank>
      • Your Toddler and Sleep
  • Kids
    • <blank>
      • Health
      • Childhood Development
      • Fitness & Nutrition
      • Childhood Safety
    • <blank>
      • Communicating with Your Kids
      • Childhood Behavior and Discipline
      • Fostering Responsibility
      • Instilling Values & Manners
    • <blank>
      • Childcare
      • Neurodiversity in Kids
      • Adopting Children
  • Teens
    • <blank>
      • Teen Health
      • Teen Puberty & Sex
    • <blank>
      • Behavior & Discipline
      • Teen Social Development
    • <blank>
      • Values & Responsibilities
  • Activities
    • <blank>
      • Printables
      • Indoor Activities
      • Learning Activities
      • Arts and Crafts
      • Performing Arts
      • Food Activities
      • Outdoor Activities
    • <blank>
      • Books
      • TV
      • Movies
      • Online
      • Quizzes
      • Games
      • Celebrities
    • <blank>
      • Parties
      • Travel
      • Toys
      • Holidays
      • Gifts
  • Learning
    • <blank>
      • By Grade
      • By Subject
      • College
      • Preschool
    • <blank>
      • Back to School
      • Study Skills
      • Learning Styles
    • <blank>
      • Homeschooling
      • Parental Involvement
      • Your Child's School
  • Family Life
    • <blank>
      • Mom Life
      • Dad Life
      • Family Relationships
      • Having a Healthy Marriage
      • Divorce
    • <blank>
      • Health & Fitness
      • COVID Resources
      • Managing Your Home
      • Moving Your Family
      • Pets
    • <blank>
      • Family Finances
      • Work
      • Families and Food
  • NewslettersNewsletters
    Newsletters

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Kids
  3. Behavior and Discipline
  4. Kids And Inappropriate Behavior

 

 

Kids and Inappropriate Behavior

Mortified by your child's behavior? Find out why kids "say the darndest things," and how you should react when it happens.
Carleton Kendrick headshot
Carleton Kendrick
Updated: December 1, 2022
  • facebook share icon
  • pin
  • twitter share icon
  • email share icon
  • Print page icon

Kids and Inappropriate Behavior

Your 3-year-old screams, "I HATE you mommy!" when you refuse to let her eat her Halloween candy before supper. At a family gathering, your 5-year-old calls his cousin a "poopie face". Or your 8-year-old pens a school paper describing a buttocks-baring Saturday Night Live TV comedy sketch.

What's normal?
Events such as these shock, discourage, and scare many parents, but don't assume that these indiscretions demonstrate that your kids haven t internalized your family values. These actions are not an indictment of your parenting. Your children are simply "being kids," using risque language and stories to gain some sense of power over confusing areas of their lives. They are also developing a sense of humor and testing your limits all part of normal, healthy child development.

It's normal for an 8-year-old to think that a man's dropping his drawers on TV is hysterically funny. At eight, "gross out" and slightly sexualized "body parts" humor have replaced former bathroom humor. These stages of childhood humor are all part of how kids cope with their growing preoccupation regarding body parts and their functions.

What parents can do
Parents can acknowledge why their kids think that these types of things are funny. You can even admit that these things were funny to you when you were a kid.

Parents can also tell their kids that certain words and situations may be funny, while also reminding them that it's ill mannered to repeat these words and acts in public. Parents must also teach their children that humor should never hurt people's feelings.

Some things are out of your hands
Parents need to understand that they can't control everything their kids see, hear, and do: Kids are going to play violent video games at a neighbor's house, swear at their siblings, and play doctor with their cousin. How we respond to our children's encounters with these "taboos" will determine their healthy development in these areas.

Sex and the media
Our kids are bombarded by suggestive and provocative messages in the media: sexually-exaggerated male and female action figures; detailed accounts of our president s sexual affairs; and daily doses of Victoria s Secret lingerie commercials. As a result, today s children are asking questions about sex at a much younger age.

Before commenting upon or responding to a sexual topic, it s wise to find out what your child really knows about it. Armed with this baseline information, you ll know better how to present simple, direct information and your values.

Read Carleton Kendrick's bio.

Carleton Kendrick headshot
About the author
Carleton Kendrick

Carleton Kendrick is the coauthor of Take Your Nose Ring Out, Honey, We're Going to Grandma's.

View more articles from this author

What's hot

  • Attention Seeking Behaviors KidsHow to Handle an Attention-…
  • an age-by-age guide to teaching kids about "the birds & the bees" KidsAn Age-by-Age Guide to…
  • How to stop bullying KidsHow to Stop Bullying: Real…
  • Treating Burns KidsFirst Aid For Burns: How to…
NewslettersNewsletters
Your partner in parenting from baby name inspiration to college planning.
Family Education
FamilyEducation does not provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Your use of the site indicates your agreement to be bound by our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Information on our advertising guidelines can be found here.

FE Footer

  • Newsletter Center
  • About Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Editorial Policy
  • Editorial Team
  • Expert Panel
  • Cookie Policy
  • Site Map
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Terms of Use
  • Do Not Sell My Info (for CA Residents)
sandbox learning logo
Family Education is part of the Sandbox Learning family of educational reference sites for parents, teachers, and students. 

factmonster logoinfoplease logoTeacherVision logo

sandbbox logo
©2022 Sandbox Networks Inc. All rights reserved. Sandbox Learning is part of Sandbox & Co., a digital learning company.