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I highly, highly recommend reading (or listening to) “How to Talk so Little Kids Will Listen” by Joanna Faber and Julie King. I’ve worked in childcare for 10+ years and now have my own little almost 2 year old and this book really helped me with all kinds of different temperaments. It’s specifically for ages 2-7, has a ton of good concrete examples of how to stop the tantrums before they escalate, and is easy to read as a lot of it is stories from other parents – there’s comfort in knowing you aren’t alone and this phase is so normal! The concepts weren’t new to me, but I think having more go-to phrases or actions is so helpful, because you’re bound to find something that works for your situation. I also really valued the examples of equivalent adut situations they give. Really helped me reframe and empathize with where the kids are coming from. I’d also react badly if I was treated the way we treat kids sometimes. (Think – you’re really sad your banana is in 2 pieces instead of whole but it’s not that big of a deal = you’re really sad your mom died but it’s not that big of a deal.) Kids can really feel as strongly about something we think is trivial as we feel about major life events. Having this reframe really helps me in the moment to be more caring and have more patience. It, obviously, doesn’t always work – I really resonate with the gentle, gentle, gentle, gentle, lose it, yeah mommy was feeling frustrated refrain 🙂

Best of luck and remember it really is just a phase!

-mom of a big emotions boy