Thinking "daddy" means "man"

[Tegans Mama]

Tegan's going through a phase. She thinks daddy means man. It's strange, at first I thought she was calling specific men daddy but now it's all men, including male toys etc. we've been saying "no, it's a man" but she still calls them daddy. Anyone had a similar problem?

Eta I put this in this section because she's saying it because she has two mummies and doesn't understand the concept of some kids having a mummy and a daddy, so it's a specific ssp issue

Eta again- Shes three and a half but has a moderate speech delay

 

[Carrie&Char]

did not want to read and run, my little girl not old enough yet, but i would not worry at all, maybe try and explain in play dad, graddad, uncle brother, cousin etc so you may look at it differently..... not sure what else to suggest

 

[Croc-O-Dile]

Not a SSP, but my daughter has zero contact with her father and he's very seldom mentioned in our house. She does the same thing though, calling men Daddy. She only does it if she sees a man and a woman together on tv or in magazines, etc. I'm interested how other people have handled this as well, because I have no idea how to. I just try to correct her and say "no, that's just a man, silly"

 

[Tegans Mama]

She said it yesterday to two different men at toys r us. I always apologise to the men and they just laugh it off. We're still working on it but not making much progress

 

[TattiesMum]

Not a SSP, but my daughter has zero contact with her father and he's very seldom mentioned in our house. She does the same thing though, calling men Daddy. She only does it if she sees a man and a woman together on tv or in magazines, etc. I'm interested how other people have handled this as well, because I have no idea how to. I just try to correct her and say "no, that's just a man, silly"

I agree that it's not just a SSP issue ... I used to do the same as a child apparently and at about Tiggy's age. I actually used to go one step further and throw my arms round any man's legs while yelling 'Daddy!!' at the top of my lungs - caused my Mother no end of embarrassment

 

[Tegans Mama]

it is quite funny. She went through a phase where all women were "mummy". Well the ones she loves. Like my sister/ her nana etc

 

[Nibblenic]

To Lo there are Mummies, Daddies, Ladys (thats because its mainly ladies at a checkout in customer service roles, so ive always said, "give it to the lady" when shes buying something). Thats it, shes just about getting little boys and little girls.

Thats the worlds population covered as far as shes concerned

They dont understand gender properly until they are 5 or that people are different genders. I think she'll get it one day soon enough.

 

[oliv]

sorry for butting in but my neice calls every woman mammy and every man daddy.

 

[Jetters]

Well K has a daddy but still calls every man we see Daddy too, and often likes to give them hugs too :lmao:

 

[Erised]

While I understand it might be a ssp issue, I do think a large part of it is completely normal and every child goes through it.

My cousin is mixed race, her dad is black and her mum is white. When she was 3 she went through a stage of calling every black man she saw 'daddy'. It was rather amusing, from an outsiders point of view, to have to explain that the man at the bus stop was just a man and not daddy.

I'm sure she'll figure it out in a few months, until then... don't let it embarrass you! It's a normal phase to go through =)

 

[Tegans Mama]

She's stopped it now, and now calls all men "mister"

 

[iBabyGirli]

The baby will grow out of it. They are little they dont fully understand but as they grow older just stick it in there head