Dear Susan,
Our 3 year old boy just recently started saying the word “poo” quite frequently, and then laughs his head off about it. On the one hand, it seems like a phase and he can be amusing, but on the other hand, some family members have said it seems troublesome. Is his behavior normal?
Laurie, London
Dear Laurie,
Absolutely normal 3 year old behaviour! This is most common among 3 to 6 year olds and stems from their recent potty training efforts, young sense of humor, and fascination with the newfound functions of the human body!
Your son is laughing because
1) he really is saying it in humor,
2) Likely, other children and adults laugh at it (and reinforce his behaviour) when he does say the word ‘poo’.
What should you do? Personally, I would do very little. It will decrease, and stop, over time. However, if it really is upsetting you, and you want to extinguish the behaviour sooner, rather than later then:
Ignore it as much as possible. That is to say, do not look at him or talk to him when he says it.
Set limits on where and when he can say it. Would it be acceptable for him to say it when he is alone in his bedroom or in the bathroom?
Put limits on who he can say it to. Perhaps he can say it as a joke to his friends, but not in front of Grandma or Grandpa, or at daycare?
Once the ground rules are established, normal negative consequence should occur, such as going to his room where only he could hear himself say it, or perhaps having a real time-out if the particular episode warrants it.
Again, Laurie, I would not worry about your son experimenting with words he finds humerous or risque. If you make a big fuss about a bad word, a toddler is apt to reuse it. It becomes an attention getter. Pretty soon, the meaningless word can become an exciting, powerful, forbidden attraction.