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Our daughter turns one years old next month. She has been developing ahead of schedule in many arenas and is a very expressive and affectionate child. Of late, she is able to reach and grab a variety of objects, including those that could be harmful to her (various wires including those connecting to heavy objects she could tip over on herself). While I watch her incessantly, I also want to begin expressing to her that some objects are not to be touched.

Is it realistic to convey this to her or is it more prudent to simply move her/object if she approaches it? So far, I do both while also calmly but firmly saying "no" re the object that's to not be touched.

At what age does one proactively uses words as primary way to bar a child from engaging with any objects that can be of harm to them?

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So far, I do both while also calmly but firmly saying "no" re the object that's to not be touched.

That's a good approach, if used consistently and lots of repeating.

At what age does one proactively uses words as primary way to bar a child from engaging with any objects that can be of harm to them?

One year is perfectly good time to start. Just be prepared to do it over and over again, it takes a lot of repetition but it eventually gets there.

Funny story: I'm in the kitchen when I hear one of the kids say "no", "no" in the living room. I check it out and he's touching something that he wasn't supposed to. He had already learned that "no" is the word associated with this activity and so he helpfully said it himself so I didn't have to :-)

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  • What age is the child in your funny story (or was at the time of the story)? Or do you rather not disclose that?
    – Bart van Ingen Schenau
    Mar 15 at 15:57
  • It's been a while. I'm guessing around 15 months give or take 1-2 months,
    – Hilmar
    Mar 16 at 18:09
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A technique which we found very effective to keep our children away from power sockets was to do the following...

Each time the child crawls towards or reaches for the dangerous item. Gently turn the child around and say 'no'. Say it gently but firmly.

Repeat this over and over. The real key is to never change the tone or volume of your voice.

Don't get exasperated or frustrated. The power is in the repetition and monotony.

We found after doing this perhaps even 4 or 5 times, the child got bored and went to explore something else.

Children like stimulation. If they find doing something has a boring result, they lose interest.

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