• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Because dads don’t always think like moms™

  • Dad
    • Celebrities
    • Gay Dads
    • Sex
    • Single Dads
  • Pregnancy
    • Labor or Delivery
    • Pregnant Wife
  • Baby
    • Baby Naming
    • Feeding
    • Sleep
    • Toilet Training
  • Kids
  • Teens
  • Activities
    • Local
    • By Age
    • Movie Reviews
    • Celebrations
  • Toys
    • We Recommend
    • Toys
  • Coaching for Dads
  • Great Dad Talks Podcast

My Child is a Non-Stop Chatterbox

August 5, 2008 by Armin Brott Leave a Comment

Q: I’ve got three kids. The middle one, who’s five,
starts chattering the second she wakes up and doesn’t close her mouth until she’s
asleep. On one hand, I love to hear her talk and have conversations about “Why
this?” and “Why that?” But she’s exhausting me and I feel like
my other children aren’t getting the attention they need because the 5-year-old
is constantly interrupting. What can I do?



A: When babies are born, we look forward to all of their “firsts.”
First smile, first laugh, first steps, first words. Especially with our first
baby, these are milestones that make us giddy with anticipation and cause us to
break out the camcorder at every turn.

Then they start rolling…and walking…and talking – and we wonder, “What
was I thinking?”

Infants get going rolling, then crawling and we are amazed at how quickly they
get good at it and soon are getting from point A to point B in little more than
a blink of an eye. Toddlers start walking sometimes just as an aside to running
and seemingly thrill at their new found ability to run in the “wrong”
direction every time. But we understand that though these may try our patience
and challenge our creative problem solving skills at times that, “This too
shall pass”.

Talking is a whole different ball game. Or is it?

We wait so patiently for their first coherent words, regale friends and
co-workers with tales of our baby’s babblings, pride ourselves in how well and
early she’s speaking in full sentences. And then it starts – the flip switches
on and there’s no off button in sight. And yes it can be exhausting.

But there’s good news! Young children learn at lightening speed with every
sense available to them. This is such a good language learning time for them
that adding a second language is a possibility. And reading to them is close at
hand. All good things.

So how to embrace the chatter of this age group without losing your cool? And
how do you ensure that the other members of the family get a word in edgewise
meanwhile? Here are some ideas:

  • Learn to ask questions that require more than a “yes” or “no”
    answer. Questions that start with ‘how many,’ ‘when,’ and ‘what if’ are good
    places to start. How many nuts were in that bag that just spilled? When do you
    think the apples will be ready to pick? What if we didn’t do the dishes and
    take out the trash?

  • Take turns (literally at first) answering questions like these. .. include all
    of your children. This teaches the art of dialog rather than monologue.

  • Look for projects that the whole family can enjoy together. This way the
    project is the center of attention and not one child in particular.

  • Schedule reading times and quiet times – children this age are more than
    capable of entertaining themselves for short periods of time without getting
    into trouble. This gives everyone in the house a much-needed moment to recharge
    and regroup. Often a chatty child is a tired child and naps are not uncommon
    once they slow down.

  • Be as good a listener as you want your child to be. Children learn their
    talking and listening habits from us just as they do anything else, through
    observation and imitation. The better listeners we can be, the better they will
    ultimately be also.


Learning to talk and have cooperative conversations are important
stepping-stones to reading. Once she’s reading, you’ll have some of that quiet
thinking time of your own (perhaps a dim memory at this point) back. Meanwhile,
find ways to appreciate that she does want to talk to you and be inclusive of
everyone in the family.

– Armin Brott



A great dad himself, Armin speaks not only as a specialist in parenting, but as a parent himself. He has written several books including The Expectant Father and Fathering Your Toddler.

Filed Under: Authors

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
SIGN-UP TODAY to receive the only baby newsletter written by dads, for dads. Act now and receive a free copy of the popular GreatDad E-Book!
My baby's due date or birthday :
Profile picture
Privacy Policy and Terms
Baby Name Finder!

what's in a name

  • Show names for:
  • Boys
  • Girls
  • Either
Finding a name you can both agree on isn't always easy. Use our simple name generator to get started.
First Letter
Last Letter
Number of Letters
Origin
Find a name!

More to See

5 Ways to Prepare Your Child for a Surgical Procedure

April 6, 2022 By Contributing Authors

How to get kids excited about dental hygiene

March 3, 2022 By Contributing Authors

Tags

529 Plan budgeting for teens college savings compromise dad dads Father's Day fatherhood friendship in-laws love marriage Movie Review parenting advice parenting skills prepaid cards ritual Sundays travel vacation

Footer

Hi mom!

Would you like to share this site with your husband or a friend?

Just enter his email address and your name below and we'll let him know all about GreatDad.com.

His email address
Your Name

Recent

  • A Dad’s Guide to Bonding with Your Kids Through Computer Games
  • 5 Ways to Prepare Your Child for a Surgical Procedure
  • How to get kids excited about dental hygiene
  • 10 Important Lessons to Teach Your Kids About Keeping Pets
  • The Happiness Advantage by Shawn Achor

Search

Tags

529 Plan budgeting for teens college savings compromise dad dads Father's Day fatherhood friendship in-laws love marriage Movie Review parenting advice parenting skills prepaid cards ritual Sundays travel vacation

Copyright © 2022 . GreatDad