Stop Children From Biting!

Kids bite for a number of reasons -- and most of them aren't intentionally malicious.

• They're in pain. When babies bite, typically it's because they're teething. They're just doing it to relieve the pain of their swollen, tender gums.

• They're exploring their world. Very young children use their mouths to explore, just as they use their hands. Just about everything infants or toddlers pick up eventually winds up in their mouths. Kids this age aren't yet able to prevent themselves from biting the object of their interest.

• They're looking for a reaction. Part of exploration is curiosity. They'll bite down on a friend or sibling to hear the surprised exclamation, not realizing how painful the experience is for that person.

• They're craving attention. In older kids, biting is just one of several bad behaviors used to get attention. When a child feels ignored, discipline is at least one way of getting noticed -- even if the attention is negative rather than positive.

• They're frustrated. Biting, like hitting, is a way for some children to assert themselves when they're still too young to express feelings effectively through words. To your child, biting is a way to get back a favorite toy, tell you that he or she is unhappy, or let another child know that he or she wants to be left alone.
  
  https://www.webmd.com/parenting/stop-children-from-biting#1