Can one child influence the energy level of another child? Therefore if the child of influence is absent, does the child that is being influenced reside to just sitting and doing nothing? I seriously hope not. The child being influenced is my armadillo. Today we went to his Little Gym class and one of his BFF's was absent. I don't know if it was a coincidence or not but the armadillo wasn't his usual rambunctious self in class. He just sort of hung around not climbing on any structure or running around. I got a little frustrated as I was trying to encourage him to climb on the bars or walk on the balance beams, but his efforts was so lacking of any enthusiasm. He was just so blah blah I was almost ready to leave. But I had to remind myself that he's only 2 1/2 and maybe he just wasn't in the climbing or jumping mood. It's hard to believe but I guess it's a possibility. I then gently forced him to walk on the beams and jump off the cushions on to the mats. The armadillo's energy level slightly increased but was never up to his predictable self.
We went to lunch with another mama friend and her son. I could see his energy level go up a little as he was acting out during lunch. No yelling or screaming, mind you, but the occasional tantrum when I wouldn't let him have a gift card that I gave to the sumo baby to gnaw on. Next we all went to the bookstore with my mama friend and son. We let the two boys out of the stroller to roam the children's book area. Then I saw him at his typical self. The armadillo and his buddy were running around, pulling out books, and wanting us to read the books to them.
Maybe he just needed some time to warm up ... or maybe he wasn't sure what to do initially ... I don't know. But I do discern that the armadillo's behaviors are swayed by other children. When specific children are displaying certain behaviors I can see the armadillo copying the behaviors. Ugh, sometimes those actions are not something I desire seeing. The armadillo yells, hits, and becomes more aggressive. Not the sort of manners I would prefer him to demonstrate. However I do realize that with children, persuasions are a 2-way street and the armadillo does go in the other direction.
Comments