Can children be naughty?
Written by: Fung Ji Hei, Game Therapist
小一的子峰上廁所一段時間還未回來，老師便派男班長到廁所看看。過了一會兒，班長上氣不接下氣地跑回來，說：「整個廁所都濕透了！」於是，老師便親自查個究竟。到了洗手間，老師只見一片澤國，全地都是水和泡，而子峰正在其中一個洗手盤「洗手」。老師問：「你在做甚麼？」他答：「洗手和看看為甚麼有泡泡。」老師為免釀成危險，阻止了子峰的行為。子峰就是一個滿有好奇心的孩子，但每次他的好奇總為其他人和自己造成一些不便。他喜歡凡事都會查問，更喜歡凡事都會作出嘗試。有一次，他為了試一試自己能否穿過椅背上的洞，把頭困了在那洞之中約一小時，之後工友用工具把椅子折開，他才能成功脫身。雖然他擁有無數可怕的經驗，但還未有令他卻步。老師們都感到束手無策，因為子峰不是壞學生，單靠懲罰是徒然的，還是要想想其他辨法。
"Naughty": A Multi-faceted View
Describing Ji Fung as "naughty" is perhaps the most fitting, and this trait is quite common among children, albeit to varying degrees. What is "naughtiness"? We often associate it with words like "mischievous" or "playful," which mostly carry a negative connotation. However, from a positive perspective, naughtiness can have many benefits. First, it's not hard to see that naughty children love to play; they are motivated to play at all times, and these motivations often stem from their curiosity. They satisfy their curious thoughts through different methods, sometimes disregarding consequences and limitations to personally try and explore solutions to puzzles. Secondly, most "naughty" children are somewhat clever and know how to play better than others, so they use various ways to express their creativity, coming up with ingenious methods to play. In summary, "naughtiness" can be seen as a mix of curiosity and creativity, only becoming problematic when it is not properly controlled and leads to trouble.
What can you do if you have a "naughty" child around?
1. Relax
Naughty children can easily make their caregivers nervous because they often do unexpected things, sometimes even causing embarrassment. We need to understand that naughtiness is one of the children's natural traits, and they are in the process of learning. We need to patiently keep pace with their growth, avoiding suppressing their development for the sake of our own pride.
2. Set Boundaries
Naughty children often cross boundaries due to a lack of understanding of them. We can set rules with them and implement them effectively. This not only ensures the children's safety but also establishes their understanding of limits.
3. Satisfy Curiosity
To address the issue at its root, we need to satisfy their curiosity. The method is to teach them how to think and find answers. For example, parents can teach them to find answers through reading or take them to nature to train their observational skills, which can help them face future challenges.