My 2.5 year old son HATES getting reprimanded. (Im like this as well so I can identify with him). Lately, whenever we ask him to stop doing something (i.e. throwing a car, being less then gentle with the dogs, etc) he lets out a high pitched scream. Its a quick one but its clear that he is overwhelmed and doesn't know how to handle his emotions. Its not even that he is "in trouble" and we're definitely not raising our voices at him, just saying "hey LO please don't throw your car, you might break it or hurt someone". Sometimes I can catch him before he does it and I say "don't scream, you're not in trouble, we're just asking you not to do that", which causes him to promptly burst into tears. I take the time to talk to him, "are you feeling frustrated?" or "I know its hard not to do something you really want to do" etc.
I really want to give him the tools to deal with whatever he is feeling but I don't know how! Anyone have any suggestions?