Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

I have to remind my DD (3.5) a lot of the time when she asks me for things, but she's generally better with other people. There was one day I had to run out for an appointment and she was begging me to take her with me - I really couldn't - and she broke my heart because made sure she said "mommy please take me with you" without being prompted. She definitely knows what she's supposed to say, but she gets lazy.

Message edited 7/21/2011 10:01:23 AM.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

Posted by eroxgirl

I have to remind my DD (3.5) a lot of the time when she asks me for things, but she's generally better with other people. There was one day I had to run out for an appointment and she was begging me to take her with me - I really couldn't - and she broke my heart because made sure she said "mommy please take me with you" without being prompted. She definitely knows what she's supposed to say, but she gets lazy.

Posted by bicosi
Don't get me started on the word WHAT.. If I call my kids, I don't like to be responded with WHAT.. I like to be responded to Yes, mom.. lol

I am 36 years old and I still VIVIDLY remember the day my grandmother went OFF on me for responding to her "what". It was easily 25 years ago. It's become a thing for me too now.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

DS is 23 mos and says Thank You all the time. Just not correctly.

He says it whenever he hands me something. That's becaue whenever I would take something from him, I'd say "Thank you". So he's learning. Even when I say "You're welcome", he says "Thank you".

As for please, that only comes out when prompted (or when he really wants something).

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

DD is 21 mos and started saying thank you consistently just recently (maybe in the last 2 months or so). When I give her some milk or water she'll almost always say thank you. Sometimes I say thank you to her and she says 'welcome' I think it's because DH and I say it so much to her that she just picked up on it. She also says please but usually not on her own. When she asks for something I'll ask her to say please and unless she's in one of her moods she'll say 'PEAS'

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

DD is almost 18 mo and says thank you (thanks really) most of the time...still working on please though. She usually grabs and goes with a thanks as she's running off.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

He loves saying Thank you and has been since about 20 months. Please not so much hahaha.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

Joey probably started doing it without asking about a month ago.

Every time he asked for something, I repeated into his head "what do you say" or if I gave him something, I'd say the same thing.

he says "tankyou" but in this like jerky quick way, it's so funny that my whole family says thank you like that now lol

Message edited 7/21/2011 11:48:34 AM.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

Most of the time she says thank you but please is harder to come by.

Before or right after giving her something I'll ask her "What do you say?" and she usually will say "I love you!" so I can't really argue with that!

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

DS started saying "Peas" and "Tank You" without prompting around 17/18 months. Thank you was the first. At 21 months he's starting to say "You're welcome" but not that often.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

DD is 3½ and I still have to prompt for "please" about 30% of the time.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

DD has been saying it for the past 2-3 months... SHe'll be 2 next month.
SHe says it 95% of the time. I remind her if she forgets.
Now shes learning it in english

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

As a grandmother of nine, I offer the following suggestion. In a society full of bullying and self-centered children, it is helpful to teach your children the benefits of consideration for others and being polite as early as possible. A book emphasizing good manners is The Magic Word by Sherrill S. Cannon. This book, which can be read to toddlers, is a rhyming story of a little girl who was rude, selfish and demanding – and had very few friends. Her mother suggested that she needed to improve her manners; so when she went to school the next day, she thought of her mother’s advice, “What is the magic word?” and she started saying “Please” and also “Thank You”. She tried to become more thoughtful of others, and discovered that she was a much happier person. The repetitive use of the phrase “What is the magic word?” has children answering “Please”! (The Magic Word has just received a NABE Pinnacle Achievement Award for Summer 2011, plus is nominated for a 2011 Global eBook Award.)

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

Colin is almost 21 months. I still have to remind him to use please most of the time.
However, he does say thank you all the time on his own - probably a few months now.
Anytime anyone hands him something or does something for him he responds with thank you.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

She started around 23 months... now, a little over 2 months later, she'll say it maybe 80% of the time without me reminding her.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

DD (18 months) says thank you most of the time she is given something, sometime we remind her. She's been doing it for about 2-3 months now. She hasn't said please yet, but I've been teaching her, "more, please" for a while.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

My son was saying it when he started speaking in full sentences which was around 2.5-3 years old. He knew how to use them correctly in context by around 3. Now he just forgets to say and we have to be on top of him with "please", "thank you", "Sorry", "excuse me", etc.

Re: When did your toddler say "please" and "thank you" without you having to ask/tell them to say it?

I'm not sure when they started saying their Ps and Qs. Probably around 2-ish?

We always make sure to model what we want, so DH and I always make a big deal of saying it to each other as well as to our kids. Even when I'm sending them to time-out or ordering them to eat their dinner, I say, "Please!"

Over time, they just started saying it. When they were first learning, I didn't FORCE them to say it, but I would expand on their sentence (child: "want cookie!" me:"want cookie PLEASE") then give them what they want. Once they were old enough to consistently say 2-3 word sentences, I would require them to repeat me.

They still need reminders at times.