I was goofing around with the boy the other night just prior to his going to bed. We were having a fine time of it when I figured it was time quit the stalling and get him settled. The boy hadn’t come to that conclusion and it took several attempts on my part before he settled down.
Even so, as I walked away from the bed he couldn’t help himself and he gave out one final playful kick. It caught the watch on my wrist and immediately, the watch fell to the ground. I knew as soon as it happened that he’d broken the band. I surprised myself because I didn’t get mad or overly upset. A little reflection on the matter revealed the reason- I realized I’d fallen victim to the excitement threshold.
The excitement threshold is a point of no return for kids. A state where their excitement level overwhelms their common sense, ability to self-regulate, their hearing and several other critical functions necessary for getting themselves back under control. The excitement threshold is different for every child and tends to get higher with age, though in some cases noticeable improvement can be painfully slow. Crossing the excitement threshold can result in anything from timeouts, to punishment, to broken things, to crying and/or tantrums.
The ET is difficult to predict, though the signs that it’s been crossed are unmistakable. The child will not want to stop the current activity and when asked will act as though they never heard the request to stop (likely because they haven’t). If another child is involved, that child will begin to yell and escalate the situation into a mini-crisis. The child who has crossed the ET often will become visibly frustrated that the “good times” are over.
The best way to deal with a child whom has crossed the ET is with a firm calm. If other kids are involved, remove them from the equation by some means, if necessary instructing them to ignore the over-excited child. Give the child space and time, be sure to get their attention when speaking to them. The main goal at this point is to get the child to calm down.
Unfortunately, the child is not always so accommodating. As often as they will eventually and uneventfully calm down, they will also get upset or refuse to stop or intentionally escalate in a desperate attempt to recapture the fun they were having before they were so callously interrupted.
It is the hope of every parent that their child will outgrow their current ET.