Floss dance | Imamother

amother

Sat, Dec 14 2019, 11:08 pm

My 7 y/o is obsessed with the Floss dance and does it constantly. My husband and I find that the dance is inappropriate--it calls attention to "that" part of the body, but my 7 y/o doesn't understand what's wrong with it. We have no idea where he learned it. Any suggestions for how to get it to stop? He has difficulty with authority in general

bigsis144

Sat, Dec 14 2019, 11:14 pm

I think it’s done with straight arms and the hips move to accommodate the arm motions they don’t gyrate or anything... the Macarena was worse.

Annoying but harmless IMHO, he will grow out of it eventually.

I learned how to Floss and it embarrassed my kids so much to see their “uncool” mom do it that they never did it again 😆

amother

Seagreen

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 12:00 am

mommy3b2c wrote:

Ignore him. This should be the worst problem you ever have.

From a behavioral standpoint, this is usually the golden rule. (If a behavior isn't really hurting anyone else, it'll usually subside when no attention is given.)

amother

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 12:07 am

amother [ Seagreen ] wrote:

From a behavioral standpoint, this is usually the golden rule. (If a behavior isn't really hurting anyone else, it'll usually subside when no attention is given.)

We haven't been giving it attention but it hasn't subsided at all, its been going on for a while already.

small bean

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 12:25 am

Why do you care if he dances like that in your house?

And if you asked him to stop, then he knows you dont like it.

Also of course he knows what he is doing and why it bothers you.

amother

Slateblue

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 12:44 am

No clue what it is...
If it’s not something good, who taught it to your child?

small bean

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 1:12 am

For those asking what it is, basically you stick your hips out from side to side, so your butt pops out.

amother

Black

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 6:22 am

small bean wrote:

For those asking what it is, basically you stick your hips out from side to side, so your butt pops out.

And, as you sway your hips, hold your hands as if there is a rope "flossing" between your legs.
DS9 learned this from kids in school. I didn't say anything at first. After a few weeks I asked him why he would want to do something to show off his private area. He insisted that's not what it's about but I haven't seen him do it since.

small bean

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 8:29 am

amother [ Black ] wrote:

I agree that's not what it's about.

Most kids are not thinking to deeply about it. While they are aware of the movements involved, they don't care too much. They are doing a fun dance.

singleagain

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 8:32 am

small bean wrote:

I agree that's not what it's about.

Most kids are not thinking to deeply about it. While they are aware of the movements involved, they don't care too much. They are doing a fun dance.

When I googled floss dance. It says it's to emote, like a victory/touchdown dance.

small bean

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 8:34 am

singleagain wrote:

When I googled floss dance. It says it's to emote, like a victory/touchdown dance.

It is used like that. Doesnt make it not a fun thing to do.

heidi

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 8:41 am

My son did this for the longest time.
We were in Disney World and he would stand on lines doing it for hours. It made me really really nuts.
He finally stopped.
If I had to guess I would say it took about 8-10 months for him to get over it.
I promise you that if you try to get him to stop you will double if not triple the time it takes him to move on to something else.
Just ignore it.

amother

Amethyst

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 9:33 am

would discourage him doing what you describe in public
would try to have him understand why -- not tznius -- and link it to a bigger teachable moment
if he did it at home, would ignore (ugh)
maybe teach him a different dance or something he can do instead of this -- or use a reinforcement chart like for any other targeted behavior you want to choose
hugs and hatzlocha

shmosmom

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 1:19 pm

My 10 year old nephew does this all the time, I didn't even think that it may be inappropriate until this thread. His mom tries to stop him someones but more because "why can't he stand still" but I just thought of it as kinda funny.

amother

Teal

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 1:22 pm

I think it's inappropriate to label it as inappropriate. You're assigning a bad meaning to something innocent.

malki2

Sun, Dec 15 2019, 1:26 pm

It’s actually horrible, but, unfortunately, not everyone was inculcated with the deep sensitivities of tzniut that would cause one to be bothered by it. It either bothers you or it doesn’t.