{"id":1744,"date":"2011-02-19T09:01:47","date_gmt":"2011-02-19T17:01:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.preschoolfun.net\/?p=1744"},"modified":"2011-02-19T09:01:47","modified_gmt":"2011-02-19T17:01:47","slug":"why-preschoolers-lie","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.surfnetkids.com\/early\/1744\/why-preschoolers-lie","title":{"rendered":"Why Preschoolers Lie"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>You\u2019ve gotten out of that baby stage, to have your child grow into an exciting, funny, dynamic little person-who lies. It can be disturbing to parents to see their toddler tell them a whopper, with such a straight face. However, it is important to understand that if your little one is denying something that you both know is true, or is telling you a tall tale, you need to understand he or she is not doing it on purpose. Child development experts stress that at this age children have a difficult time drawing the line between reality and fantasy. There are many reasons that her fibbing could be happening. Here are some very common reasons that preschoolers lie-<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>They      simply forget-<\/strong>Remembering and having memory is a skill that we develop as      we grow older. Research has proven that preschoolers have very short      memories. So keep this in mind if you are questioning your preschooler,      about a behavior that did not occur right that minute. She may have no      memory of what you are questioning her about.<\/li>\n<li><strong>They      are great wishful thinkers-<\/strong>Part of the joy of this age, is that they can      wish things they that they want them to be.\u00a0 This means that when you confront your      toddler about why she broke that cherished item, she\u2019s not really trying      to get away with it, she just wishing that it did not really happen. And      children this age can really convince themselves that they really had      nothing to do with something. <\/li>\n<li><strong>They      have great imaginations-<\/strong>Preschoolers have rich fantasy lives. The power of      imagination is well developed in children this age. This happens because a      preschooler is having a big surge in creativity. This means that your      preschooler may actually believe what she makes up in her head, really is      true. <\/li>\n<li><strong>They      have a need to feel good-<\/strong>Reporting important stories (whether true or not)      helps your child to feel important. If your child is trying to convince      you that they completed a task, far beyond their abilities, they are most      likely seeking approval, rather then trying to consciously lie, about      their accomplishments.<\/li>\n<li><strong>They      crave attention-<\/strong>Your preschooler will quickly figure out that if she can      tell a great tall tale, she is most likely to get a big response out of      you. It is important to understand that she will not even be deterred by      the possibility of a negative reaction. Child development experts call      this \u201cexploratory lying\u201d as many preschoolers use it to find out where the      boundaries of a relationship are. <\/li>\n<li><strong>They      need a sense of control-<\/strong>If your preschooler falsely claims she came to the      rescue, in a traumatic situation, she is most likely to find a sense of      order. Preschoolers can often become overwhelmed by situations that seem      out of control or are beyond their comprehension. They use this type of      lying to bring a sense of order back into their life.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>As you can see preschooler lie for a variety of reasons, however, not matter how harmless the lie, it is up to the adult to set the parameters of truth and telling the truth. It is crucial to reassure your preschooler that you will love her, not matter what the truth really is. Help her understand that while it can be fun to make up stories, that telling the truth is one of the basic foundations of getting along. Rather then lecturing your preschooler, use different situations to help her determine what the truth is and how she should report it. This way she grows up secure in the knowledge that she can always report to you, the truth.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>You\u2019ve gotten out of that baby stage, to have your child grow into an exciting, funny, dynamic little person-who lies. It can be disturbing to parents to see their toddler tell them a whopper, with such a straight face. However, &#8230;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.surfnetkids.com\/early\/1744\/why-preschoolers-lie\">[Continue]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[406,103,740,751,741,407,752,753,581,754,755,756],"class_list":{"0":"post-1744","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-tips","7":"tag-auto","8":"tag-child","9":"tag-child-development","10":"tag-child-development-experts","11":"tag-children","12":"tag-draft","13":"tag-lying-and-preschoolers","14":"tag-power-of-imagination","15":"tag-preschoolers","16":"tag-tale","17":"tag-why-preschoolers-lie","18":"tag-wishful-thinkers","19":"entry"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Why Preschoolers Lie &#187; Early Childhood Education \u00bb Surfnetkids<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"You\u2019ve gotten out of that baby stage, to have your child grow into an exciting, funny, dynamic little person-who lies. 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