# Ideas for toddler who won't wear hats?



## late-night nan (Jan 28, 2003)

Any suggestions for making hat-wearing more appealing to a toddler who won't wear hats? We do use sunscreen, but I'd feel better about the sun protection of a hat. We've tried different kinds of hats with and without velcro straps, and he always tries to take them off.

Also, this makes it really hard to put him in the bike trailer because he's so miserable with the helmet on.

TIA for any advice!


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## Ynez (May 24, 2003)

Do you think he doensn't want to wear hats because you want him to or is about the feeling of the hat on his head?

If it's the first issue, I'd try to let him have as much agency in hat wearing as possible -- like picking out the hat, playing games of putting the hat on and off (inside).

If he doesn't like the feel, could you try having him wear it for increasingly longer times, say start with 5 minutes, if he makes it that long, give him a sticker and increase the amount of time?

My DD is very fair so hat wearing is necessary -- if she wants to go outside when it's sunny, the hat stays on but she really likes wearing hats (she has several and loves to go hat shopping) so it's normally not a problem. But when she was younger, we did a lot of putting the hat back on her head after it was tossed -- I wonder if it's just a feeling they have to get used to?


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## rubysmomjess (Apr 23, 2004)

Two things that help..not 100%, but help.
-I always wear a hat too, and when dh is going too, he wears a hat...that way it's "what you do" when you go outside.
-I tell her we can't go to the park, go for a walk (all things she likes to do) unless she wears a hat.

Also make sure the hat fits and doesn't fall down in his eyes.


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## Tuesday (Mar 3, 2003)

Your son is a month older than mine. I'm not sure if this will work but this is what I've been doing with my DS. I apply sunscreen on him. I put his hat on him. He wears it a bit, and throws it off. I keep putting his hat back on him. I don't even comment on the hat being ripped off. I just pick it up, say, "oops, you dropped it!" and put it lightly on his head. I don't do the straps up - just let them hang loose. Originally, he would rip off his hat every two seconds. But, I would just pop it back on his head, after waiting a few minutes. I guess if he was upset, I would stop and leave him bareheaded. But, he seems to not mind at all. I've been doing this since the beginning of the warm weather and now, he wears his hat for 15, 20, 30 minutes at a time. Now, I don't know if your DS gets REALLY UPSET about it. My DS doesn't seem to get too ticked - he just rips it off. But, I just put it back on. It sounds pretty simple what I'm doing ... I don't know .... I just kept at it because my DS is so darn fair and bald.... I know his head will get burnt if I don't. I also will take his hat and put it on myself and pretend I'm going to wear DS's hat. I mean, I'll joke with him. He'll giggle and then get excited when I give him back his hat. I'm glad I've been persistent with this because I've noticed in the last week that he is now trying to put that hat on his head himself! So, if you just keep at it, maybe, he'll get used to it?


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## wombat (Nov 3, 2002)

I do like rubysmomjess. No hat, no outside, no play. My dd is 18mo. She still tries to take the hat off sometimes, but I just put it back on. Our hat routine is a bit like toothbrushing. She's learnt to accept that too.

In Australia, it's tantamount to child abuse not to put a hat and sunscreen on a child








Elementary school kids have to wear sunhats at school too. It's much easier to get a kid to wear a hat when everyone is wearing one.


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## nova22 (Jun 26, 2004)

We use rubyymomjess's idea, or else we make it into a game. I put the hat on my head and make a funny face, then he laughs. He puts the hat on his head and I laugh. Eventually he kinda forgets to keep playing and the hat stays on.







Now he is putting EVERYTHING on his head like a hat. We went to a coffee shop today and got smoothies, and he took my lid and put it on his head, balanced it, and walked around in the store. This from a kid who would act like I was boiling him in hot acid if I tried to put a hat on him last winter.


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## Free Thinker (Jan 1, 2003)

My DD loves to wear hats. We have a box full of them. Some have matching outfits, others go with about anything. We have always had DD wear a hat. Now we tell her how cute she is. It's like a game. She wears them all the time, even in the house. We let her pick the one she wants to wear. She puts it on and then looks at herself in the mirror. I hope you can find some way to make hat wearing fun for your little one.


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## late-night nan (Jan 28, 2003)

These are all terrific ideas--I should be wearing hats more often anyway, so this is a good reminder for me, too









Our ds just takes off anything that's on his head. He doesn't like the feeling--he even pulls at the foam visor when we put it on momentarily in the bath to prevent water from getting into his eyes. I'm not sure that letting him choose his hat would make a difference, but I'll give anything a try.

Anyone have luck with bicycle helmets? He's hates wearing it, but we'd love to take him cycling...


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## Kermit (May 30, 2002)

We solved the problem by simply buying a hat from Hanna Andersson's with tie straps. He can't get it off. Mwaaahahahahaaaa! Mabye your kiddo would be able to, but I find that the shape of the hat makes it harder to remove than the typical bucket hat.


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## meco (Mar 1, 2004)

My son will only wear a hat (or anything on his head or in his hair) if he can SEE himself in it. I always put his hat on on front of a mirror, let him check himself out. He seems to be alright with wearing it after he sees himself in it. I am not sure why. Also I leave hats around (baseball hats, snow hats, etc) and he dresses up in them. And DS puts them on himself in front on the mirror now. He is more inclined to do it if he can do it himself.









Good luck. I hope you find something that works for you.


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