What to Do When You Feel Like Hitting: A No Hitting Book for Toddlers (Big Feelings Books for Toddlers)

Great book for toddlers or older! I bought this for my 2.5 y.o. and she would request me to read it every night. She would demonstrate some of the techniques described in the book at her own voilition, which was awesome because it showed that a couple methods were 'sticking.' The next step was trying to help her to perform the technique when needed....like when wanting to hit her brother, which is a bit more challenging!The illustrations are beautiful, large, and colorful. There's one sentence that I think is confusing for little ones to comprehend, such as the breathing method you'd use when blowing bubbles or a pinwheel. I wish there was an "as if" in there so it's taken less literally. However, the flow of the book is nice. It goes through situations which might occur, how you might feel, and then the techniques. Love the page that summarizes all the techniques and the 6 strategies in the back for parents. The pages are a slightly thicker than most paperbacks for kids - more durable for sure, which I appreciate. It's written by a child psychologist, so you know it's going to be a book of quality!

Book is well made. Pages feel nice. Easy reading. Nice art. A helpful book for alternatives to hitting.

My almost 3 year old was recently diagnosed with Autism. He struggles with transitions and also has a speech delay, which often contributes to big meltdowns when he doesn’t get his way. He’s been a “hitter” since about 18M… and it’s so hard! I know he has big emotions and can’t regulate them easily. This book is FANTASTIC! It’s easy to read and has cute and relatable illustrations.It can be a little repetitive, but that’s what helps get the point across. Let’s face it, my son is also very repetitive, so it seems to resonate with him. It talks about different feelings and emotions, how it’s ok to feel that way, and how to handle them without hitting. For example, you can use your words to ask a grownup for help; you can draw an angry picture; you can squeeze your hands into a ball and release them, etc. There’s different options for different scenarios, and each one is described in a way that toddlers can figure out how to do it themselves. His favorite is to squeeze his hands into a fist, or give his body a big “squeeze hug.” I’ve already caught him doing that a few times instead of slapping me!It’ll take practice (like the book mentions) but I think he’ll be able to self-regulate better with some of these ideas!! I also have some new phrases to use and picked up some sign language. I love the tips for caregivers in the back!If you have a hitter (especially one on the spectrum), you need this! I actually like it better than our other book, Hands Are Not for Hitting. Similar story line, but this one is more detailed and better suited for older toddlers. I highly recommend it!!Hope this helps ☺️

Well written but a little long for the age group. I would still recommend it, but it’s not something you can quickly read regularly.

Easy for my toddlers to follow along and it keeps my toddler entertained. They even enjoy practicing the different ways of managing their big emotions.

We were having issues with my 3 year old hitting a lot at school, we started reading this 3 days ago and have read it multiple times throughout that time and he has been doing so good at school no hitting incidents!

When my toddler was going through a hitting phase, we like to read this book and it seemed to help a lot

Having a problem with hitting during those toddler years? This book has helped tremendesly with dealing with those big feelings and the wanting to use force when not happy. We have started reading this book everyday with our 4 year old to help regulate those emotions and actions.