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A mom turned to Reddit for advice with a parenting problem that is probably a whole lot more common than most people realize. She said her twin 6-year-old boys have suddenly become “obnoxious” since starting kindergarten. She wondered if this was just a normal part of growing up or a cause for concern.

Since they’re only six years old, she felt their “older mannerisms” might be cause for concern and went so far as to lament the loss of their “childlike innocence.” And while kindergarten still seems very young, as most parents told her, it’s all part of growing up. Sometimes those growing pains are just harder on the parents than their kids.

A mom complained that kindergarten made her twin boys ‘obnoxious.’

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The twins’ mom explained that they started kindergarten only this year and that they’ve become increasingly “obnoxious.” She worried they were picking up bad habits from the other kids. She argued that they’re losing their childlike innocence and “becoming annoying boys.”

“We keep them off screens as much as possible,” she wrote. “They don’t play video games or anything.” She then expressed that she wasn’t expecting to enter this stage of attitude so early. 

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Other parents confirmed that once kids start school, everything changes.

In response, the comment section tried to reassure her, explaining that their behavior is normal, even at that young age. “Six is the start of middle childhood,” one commenter wrote. “They’re posturing a bit, but when things get to be too much, they’ll come and cuddle and go back to being your little boys.” 

Another mom explained where the mannerisms might be coming from. She said she has a young child and a much older one, who ends up teaching the little one that kind of behavior. And that younger child is probably passing it along to other kids at school.

Another commenter made an important point, writing, “Very normal, but I’d avoid framing it as school and other kid’s access to screens ‘corrupting’ your child.” They added, “Part of this age is becoming independent and separating yourself from your parents and finding a new peer group is part of that. So the weird slang, bad attitude, etc is all part of that. I think that even if you raised an entire class of kids in a bubble they’d come up with their own slang and annoying behaviors to start to assert their identity as separate from their parents!”

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The twins’ change in behavior is developmentally normal.

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Experts call the way the twin boys are acting up the “school-age stage” in children. When they first enter kindergarten, it’s common for them to exhibit behavioral changes. The Raising Children Network, an Australian parenting organization, explained that when little ones start school, it’s natural for them to start to assert their independence. However, it’s important to remember that they are still young and will seek attention and approval from their parents.

One important factor at this age is setting limits. As kids begin to make new friends at school, it’s important for parents to teach them to be respectful, take responsibility, and follow rules. If they’re starting to be “annoying,” as the mom described the twins, that behavior might require redirection.

Be mindful, however, that it’s part of their development. The West Coast Steiner School described this as “The Six-Year-Old Change,” a developmental shift that children at that age experience. And it’s not only behavioral. They are growing in size, losing baby teeth, and experiencing physical changes.

Emotionally, they’re learning that adults make mistakes, they have more specific questions about the world, and they’re slowly moving away from early-childhood imagination. They’re still young kids, but they’re beginning to form a sense of empowerment. The behavior and interests of their peers will become increasingly important.

One mom pointed out, “My kid is 7 and he has picked up a bunch of trendy internet slang and general nonsense from kids at school too.” She added, “I don’t mind. I feel like it means that your child is prone to pro-social behaviour, understands how to adapt to cultural norms, tends toward being silly, and is generally aware and able to glean contextual info from their observations.”

Watching little ones transition from babies to kids is hard for parents, but their behavior is normal. What’s most important is that she’s there for them as they learn to be more independent, and that she continues to guide and educate them through the process. The bathroom humor might be “annoying,” but it’s all part of the process.

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Matt Machado is a writer studying journalism at the University of Central Florida. He covers relationships, psychology, celebrities, pop culture, and human interest topics.