How to Get a Child to Stop Humming

Humming a merry little tune can be music to a child's ears but drive all those within earshot to the brink of insanity. When looking at stopping your child's humming it's important to understand their need for musical accompaniment to their daily tasks.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Observation
• Time
• Patience
• Understanding

1. Sit down with your child and ask them what they are feeling when they hum. It could be that they are feeling nervous, stressed or just plain bored.
2. If your child is humming due to boredom, find new and unusual activities for them to try using their mouths. This could include blowing games, such as blowing a marble across a table or using straws and sand to create sand art.
3. Is your child an auditory learner? This type of learner often absorbs more knowledge when soft music or even just white noise (like static) plays in the background. Without background sound, the learner may hum, sing, or create rhythmic noise to fill the deafening silence.
   
   While this will not work so well in school, consider playing soft music in the background while they carry out their tasks at home.
   
   Explain to your child that you understand their need to hum and encourage them to do so at a level which only they can hear. Teaching your child to use their inner voice will allow them to hum to their heart's delight without impacting on others.
4. Could your child be hypersensitive to noise? While it might seem odd, some children create noise to block out other noises. My 8-year-old is hypersensitive to noise - so sensitive that even the hum of the refrigerator caused him to hum incessantly. It may seem extreme, but consider reducing noise in the presence of your tot by looking at appliances with low sound output. Warn your child prior to loud noises in the home such as the vacuum or music being played to allow them the opportunity to either cover their ears or leave the room. Some parents find that simply offering their child a set of ear muffs can psychologically stop humming due to hypersensitivity. This isn't the ideal solution as a child wearing earmuffs in July may raise an eyebrow or two!
5. Humming is a self-stimulating behaviour and can be a way of helping your child to relax. Rather than stop this outright, encourage your child to do this but only in certain settings, such as when they need to unwind.
   
   To explain this to your child, think of how you unwind and tell your child about it. Whether it's switching on the TV or running a hot bath, explain to your child that you understand it's similar to their humming. As much as you want to flip the TV on or have a bath during the course of your day you leave it until you get home in private to do so. Communicating in this way with your child will explain to them that you understand their needs which will bring you closer while also showing them how they can keep their behaviour to a particular time or place.
   
   One technique which has worked in my house is encouraging my son to leave a room and head for a quiet spot in his bedroom when it all becomes too much for him. I have also encouraged him to tell an adult when he's nearing meltdown so that he can be taken to an area free from stress to recompose himself. This has really helped in reducing the humming and other self-stimulating behaviours including flapping and fidgeting.
6. Use your child's humming to unleash their musical genius by encouraging him or her to sing instead. Humming has been shown to improve a child's vocal range as well as their ability to improve how well their voice carries, so you may have an American Idol on your hands!
   
   Yes, it's swapping one behaviour for another, but if it keeps you and your child from meltdown that is all that matters! Explore with your child the wide range of noises that the human voice can make to encourage variety.
7. If you still feel that you are getting nowhere with the behaviour arrange an appointment with a pediatrician or occupational therapist to find out if there are any underlying causes for the humming.