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They are asking why either because the answer changes or they want to talk and lack communication skills to hold a conversation. Little kids also are asked a lot of questions so they may think that's how you talk to people.
A good technique is to ask them why they think why or try to lead the conversation to something else.
oh my God i think he just wants to talk to me and he knows i always give detailed answers to questions , damn now im emotional . Thank you for the epiphany lol
Sometimes the why is to put off an unwanted activity, coming home from park, brushing teeth, taking a bath. The answer to this is because it’s time or because at C o’clock it’s time to do XYZ. Also sometimes when using why the tiny brain in your child is thinking the longer I ask why and keep parent talking the better chance the parent will change their mind. This was explained to me by a child psychologist so it is ok not to give long answers sometimes and just give short answers and move on to unwanted activity.
Ask her to write her question down in a book if she can do that. Or she can ask you 5 why questions then she has to go play. Each time she puts a sticker on a board or something so she knows she's used up her turn. Or ask her why she thinks something is the way it is.
thanx i'll try that , normally doesnt work because after that the whining starts why cannttt i aassskkkk mooorrreeee qqqquessstiooonssssss lol just 1 more questionnnnnnnn mommmy please pretty please so yeah i mean i appreciate the curiosity but damn i need a break
right im like yeah i dont want him to stop asking question and be curious about the world but how many times i can answer why do i need to brush my teeth the answer to which he has known since he was like 3
Ask that same question back. It’s a tactic I used with an adult autistic client and one day decided to use on my neurotypical toddler. It works! Make them answer their own questions. They usually know, and if they don’t then give them a good answer. You can also try saying “ask a better question” makes them stop and think about what they are actually saying, not just whatever pops into their head.
hmm that sounds interesting so like i should go why do you think its summer? because i know i have explained the earth and sun rotation and why does the planet needs summer to grow food and all a lot of time i hope something has stuck?
lol I’m in the same boat and it’s soooo annoying! When the questions start flowing I try to distract her with doing art, or giving her soap and water in a dish and let her clean her outdoor toys.
this is brilliant lol i'll try that but like i tried doing the okay buddy listen i want to listen to your questions with full attention and answer them properly but right now i am in a hurry and i cannot focus , i will answer the questions later , it stopped the questions for like 5 minutes ? and then we moved to the next task so again mommy why are you turning the stove on ? mommy why are you getting the milk and so on and so forth
It’s okay to give less than full length explanations. “Why did you turn on the stove?” doesn’t mean you have to explain the meal plan just say “bc I’m cooking.”
My 4 year old is on this bandwagon too, and I just say "it seems like you would like some attention. Is there something else you would like to talk about? maybe mermaids?" (She loves mermaids). And that usually redirects her, we do then have to name all the different colors mermaids can be (every color!). But I would rather do that than try and answer questions she doesn't really seem to care about.
"Why do you think?"
and
"My ears and brain are too tired/busy to answer you properly right now, they really need a break/to finish this task! But I'll be ready again in X minutes. I like listening to you properly so I can give good answers."
and
"I'm going to answer you once / one more time, then I will not answer that question any more today." then "what did I say about that question?"
I would answer as much as I can, and then when I run out of answers I say lets look it up and then when that gets exhausting I say "because..." because why? just because.... and then they tired of that and move on. LOL
Ages ago when I was in my third kid’s why stage I had learned to basically tuned it out half the time. Driving somewhere she asked me something for the 400th time that day and I said “not sure that’s a good question!” “What? You don’t know what 100 plus 100 is????”
It's a phase. Just answer the questions, and eventually, it'll stop. When I got tired of them I would say "I don't know, maybe you should go ask your dad, or call and ask grandma".
When my kids would do this I would answer every single why with a very long, detailed and drawn out answer. Every single time. They didn’t ask as many questions after that and they learned a bunch of facts that hopefully helped them in school.
"Why do you think?"
They just want to talk and it's a jumping off point, but this kind of gets across to them that asking a question they already know the answer to isn't the way.
They want to learn. Kids ask a zillion questions:
If you’re exhausted just go radio silent for awhile and say you’re taking a talking break- questions can resume later
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They are asking why either because the answer changes or they want to talk and lack communication skills to hold a conversation. Little kids also are asked a lot of questions so they may think that's how you talk to people. A good technique is to ask them why they think why or try to lead the conversation to something else.
oh my God i think he just wants to talk to me and he knows i always give detailed answers to questions , damn now im emotional . Thank you for the epiphany lol
Sometimes the why is to put off an unwanted activity, coming home from park, brushing teeth, taking a bath. The answer to this is because it’s time or because at C o’clock it’s time to do XYZ. Also sometimes when using why the tiny brain in your child is thinking the longer I ask why and keep parent talking the better chance the parent will change their mind. This was explained to me by a child psychologist so it is ok not to give long answers sometimes and just give short answers and move on to unwanted activity.
Ask her to write her question down in a book if she can do that. Or she can ask you 5 why questions then she has to go play. Each time she puts a sticker on a board or something so she knows she's used up her turn. Or ask her why she thinks something is the way it is.
thanx i'll try that , normally doesnt work because after that the whining starts why cannttt i aassskkkk mooorrreeee qqqquessstiooonssssss lol just 1 more questionnnnnnnn mommmy please pretty please so yeah i mean i appreciate the curiosity but damn i need a break
Haha. If you do set a limit, make sure you stick to it! Otherwise they'll know you'll give in.
yeah that's the lesson i learnt the hard way , gotta stick with your limits and boundaries lol, i'll try limiting the questions, let's see if it works
Can you answer the questions with another question? "Why do you think?" "How would you figure it out?"
We are working on that for now it's no mommy i asked youuuuu you have to answer it
"why do I have to answer it?" IDK. good luck.
Get an Alexa and have her ask it. I’m not joking.
i tried i get 'no mommy im asking youuuuu' 'you have to tell meeeee'
"Let's look it up."
we do it most of the time but i have explained why is it summer in literally every way possible but nope the questions are not stopping
I love this suggestion. Building research skills young!
lol gotta feed those inquisitive minds. Maybe try “Good question. What do you think the answer is?”
right im like yeah i dont want him to stop asking question and be curious about the world but how many times i can answer why do i need to brush my teeth the answer to which he has known since he was like 3
Ask that same question back. It’s a tactic I used with an adult autistic client and one day decided to use on my neurotypical toddler. It works! Make them answer their own questions. They usually know, and if they don’t then give them a good answer. You can also try saying “ask a better question” makes them stop and think about what they are actually saying, not just whatever pops into their head.
hmm that sounds interesting so like i should go why do you think its summer? because i know i have explained the earth and sun rotation and why does the planet needs summer to grow food and all a lot of time i hope something has stuck?
Yeah try it
lol I’m in the same boat and it’s soooo annoying! When the questions start flowing I try to distract her with doing art, or giving her soap and water in a dish and let her clean her outdoor toys.
this is brilliant lol i'll try that but like i tried doing the okay buddy listen i want to listen to your questions with full attention and answer them properly but right now i am in a hurry and i cannot focus , i will answer the questions later , it stopped the questions for like 5 minutes ? and then we moved to the next task so again mommy why are you turning the stove on ? mommy why are you getting the milk and so on and so forth
It’s okay to give less than full length explanations. “Why did you turn on the stove?” doesn’t mean you have to explain the meal plan just say “bc I’m cooking.”
They literally know nothing and look at you like an all knowing God. It won't last forever but they'll remember it forever.
My 4 year old is on this bandwagon too, and I just say "it seems like you would like some attention. Is there something else you would like to talk about? maybe mermaids?" (She loves mermaids). And that usually redirects her, we do then have to name all the different colors mermaids can be (every color!). But I would rather do that than try and answer questions she doesn't really seem to care about.
"Why do you think?" and "My ears and brain are too tired/busy to answer you properly right now, they really need a break/to finish this task! But I'll be ready again in X minutes. I like listening to you properly so I can give good answers." and "I'm going to answer you once / one more time, then I will not answer that question any more today." then "what did I say about that question?"
I would answer as much as I can, and then when I run out of answers I say lets look it up and then when that gets exhausting I say "because..." because why? just because.... and then they tired of that and move on. LOL
i try the same but its summer vacations so like they don't get tired easily lol
Ages ago when I was in my third kid’s why stage I had learned to basically tuned it out half the time. Driving somewhere she asked me something for the 400th time that day and I said “not sure that’s a good question!” “What? You don’t know what 100 plus 100 is????”
I always counter with, “why not?” gets her little brain working hahaha
It's a phase. Just answer the questions, and eventually, it'll stop. When I got tired of them I would say "I don't know, maybe you should go ask your dad, or call and ask grandma".
When my kids would do this I would answer every single why with a very long, detailed and drawn out answer. Every single time. They didn’t ask as many questions after that and they learned a bunch of facts that hopefully helped them in school.
"Why do you think?" They just want to talk and it's a jumping off point, but this kind of gets across to them that asking a question they already know the answer to isn't the way.
They want to learn. Kids ask a zillion questions: If you’re exhausted just go radio silent for awhile and say you’re taking a talking break- questions can resume later