Your Concerns about Fighting, Hitting, or Bullying, School Age

You said you were concerned about your child's fighting or hitting. You may find your child fights or hits as often as a few times a week. Your child may do things such as hitting brothers or sisters, kicking, or yelling. Your child may act as if s/he is trying to "get even" with someone. S/he may do this by hurting others or using bad language. S/he probably does not act this way very often and when s/he does it causes few problems for him/her. Many of these behaviors are common in children your child's age.

Warning signs that things may be getting worse:

• Fighting and hitting much more often (more than a few times a week)
• Causing injury to those s/he hits or fights
• Fighting at school or in places where s/he gets in trouble
• Starting fights with other children
• Picking fights with younger or smaller children

If you think things are getting worse, talk to your child's doctor even if you have discussed this before.

Adapted in part from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Primary Care (DSM-PC) (1996).