My kids refuse to say hi/bye to everyone

My kids are going to be 3 in May. They are usually shy kids when they see stranger, and don't like to say hi to anyone. When they could not talk as they were younger, we just assumed that they have not learn the language yet. But they can now talk in sentences, they still refuse to say hi/good morning to us (parents) and teachers. We asked to say it in the morning, they only say it when they want to. The more we asked, the more they refuse. When we came home from work, they also refuse to say hi to us. Any reasons? I see that other kids are more social and sweet. I really feel discouraged.
Do your kids have similar behaviors?

 

My oldest dd used to not say hi or bye to others. It was embarrassing as I think it's rude. Well, She did grow out of that and is very polite now. She is still shy. My y oungest dd is now not wanting to say hi to people when we ask her to.

I think yours are still so young, give them some time and don't feel discouraged.

 

My kids sometimes say it and sometimes they don't. I don't stress about it and don't make them say anything they don't want to either.

 

Mine are very shy with strangers (or even people they know well, like their aunts/uncles and family friends) and will usually not speak to them at all at first. They try to hide behind my legs. If we're meeting at someone's house or at a park, it takes my kids half an hour to warm up.

They do say hi and good morning, etc., to DH and me very freely. But my guess, if your kids don't otherwise have issues with speech or interaction, is that they're just being obstinate. They know you REALLY want them to say hi, so they don't.

 

My oldest is also very shy and needs time to warm up. I bought a book: http://www.amazon.com/Shyness-Breakthrough...i/dp/1579547613 to try to understand her feelings a little more. It's quite a helpful book.

 

My kids are like yours too. They've always been shy and don't like saying hi/bye to strangers. I've had conflicting feelings about it: on the one hand, I don't want to push it and make them feel even more self-conscious, but on the other hand, I feel like it's a socialization skill they should learn, just like saying "thank you" and "please." So I made a sticker chart and they get a sticker each time they say hello or good-bye to someone. When they get a certain number of stickers, they get a prize. Boy, did that really motivate them to say hello to everyone! I think it also made them more confident about speaking up in general.