Yeah, stuff like this is bad. As a parent you need to stop this. Gets harder the older they are. But how?

A few steps:

- Control yourself emotionally. You're a role model for your child. Your child can't control their emotion and you can't change their emotion either. But you can control yours.

- Set a firm limit. "I won't let you hit anyone else".

- Stay calm. There is no way your child can calm down if you aren't.

- Connect to your child. There's a reason your child does the thing it does. Why? Figure it out! Be empathic. Acknowledge their need.

- Model them appropriate actions. Show them the best way how to handle a situation like this from now on.

I'm just reiterating things from the youtube channel in the top post. Stuff like this takes time. But it's also normal. Kids simply do not have all the strategies and emotional control to handle some situations appropriately like adults do.

But, be sure that you know. Control yourself. Be a model to them and show them, how it's done. Sooner or later they will (hopefully) adapt your strategy.

And that's why I'm against timeouts. They are not an appropriate response. Imagine getting a timeout of your boss when you get angry with a bug of your co-worker. That would not be an appropriate response either. Your boss would need to show you a strategy, how to handle conflicts now and in the future. Be the same to your kids.

The "timeout" is not a punishment in response to an action, it's a way to defuse the situation and facilitate the sorts of conversations you're describing.

The timeout makes many children even more angry and on top of that angry on their parent, who they should trust.