How to stop 11mo touching oven?

[Rowellen]

My 11 month old DS loves to play with the oven. It has a pretty light and lots of knobs & dials to play with. So far he has turned the temp to full but he hasn't yet turned it on. How do I get him to stop?

I've tried:
explaining to him (I don't think he understands yet),
moving him away (what a fun game - mummy is picking me up),
smacking his hand (he just laughs at me!),
making an angry voice (he's still laughing!)
distraction with other toys/kitchen stuff (lasts about 2 seconds because the oven is so much more interesting)
opening the cupboards around the oven and using them as a barricade (not really practical because he can & does shut the cupboards)

How do I make him understand that the oven is dangerous and not to be touched? I don't want him to burn his little fingers or burn the house down.

Any suggestions?

[Lolli]

Hun, I actually got my ds's hand and put it close to the oven door while it was on. Obviously not on the oven door, and not close enough to burn, just close enough for him to feel it was hot. The next few times he went to touch it, I reminded him that it was hot, and he looked at his hand and pretty much backed off.

Your little one might be a bit too young for that to work yet, but worth a try? HTH

[Visitor7]

Similar to LoriRae - get him to touch it. Obviously not so that it gives him 3rd degree burns or anything! Just enough for him to realise what hot is. I've done this with both my girls, and I've never had a problem with them touching it. Goes for coffee cups, stove, kettle etc. When he touches it, say 'oooooh hot, ouchies' or something similar. Just keep doing it until he understands.

[LionsandBears]

No personal experience, but watch my brother with his kids.

When the kids were near the oven or the fireplace, he'd do that sucking sound (where you pierce your lips together like you're going to whistle), then say, "hot, it'll hurt" and the kids would back off.

Getting them to feel the heat off a cup of tea etc whilst saying the same thing will help train them.

[Fruit Tingles]

I would do what Jodi suggested. My DD has recently started to learn "Hot" and "Cold" and the only way she has learnt was from experiencing both.
Before I used to say "Darling, please don't touch that, its hot" and she wouldn't understand, but now that I let her touch a hot cup of coffee and I tell her the same thing, she tells me "Hot" and leaves it alone.
I never really had a issue with the oven, in my old house the oven was on the floor, and I was lucky coz DD never seemed interested in the oven. Now she understands hot, so she doesn't even attempt it.

More drastically, you could gate off the kitchen (if possible) so he is unable to get into there unattended.

[Frangipani]

Our son is 19months now- but would've started around the same age as yours...and still can't help himself. I think he may be now starting to understand as he has touched it when it was very warm a couple of times (not scolding hot though) and he seems to be realising when the red lights are on it is hot- or ouchies. But recently he has begun turning the knobs- something he never really did before- and we had the same reactions with your disiplines- so now we've taken all the knobs off & have the oven ones & 1 stove knob we use when we're using the oven/stove then take it off straight away after cooking. Our friends had had to do this with their sons too. Maybe a little drastic but its working.