Behavior Management

Behavior Management

The primary goal of classroom or group-care behavior management is not for the teacher or adult to manage the children but for the children to learn how to regulate themselves. Behavior is the visible representation of the child’s effort at any given moment to integrate what he or she wants or feels with what he or she chooses to do.

Many factors motivate children’s behavior and the decisions they make, and a “one size fits all” approach to classroom management is neither universally effective nor considered developmentally appropriate (Copple & Bredekamp, 2009; Kohn, 1999). A sound approach to guidance includes the following:

• Building a trusting relationship with each child
• Accepting feelings children express without judgment
• Determining the precipitants or causes of behaviors
• Establishing guidelines that allow for a range of consequences rather than a fixed or predetermined punishment
• Intentionally teaching and modeling decision making
• Regarding children as problem solvers and expecting them to participate in finding acceptable solutions for conflicts
• Communicating expectations clearly and praising children’s efforts to meet them
• Pointing out good decisions

When you see a child “fly off the handle,” know that the child decided to do so because it seemed the only option, whether or not the child is aware of having come to that conclusion after weighing alternatives. Brain research has revealed that when children experience prolonged or significant stress, a chemical reaction interferes with the “fight or flight” response, resulting in reactive aggression as a protective measure against a perceived threat (Bruno, 2011; Gartrell, 2011). Therefore children experiencing high levels of stress at home or in school may act out for reasons much more complex than a simple mischievous desire to break a rule or get something they want.

Automatically punishing reactive aggression only serves to make the situation worse, as punishment compounds the stress that caused the behavior in the first place. Sometimes it can be difficult to figure out what is going on when a situation erupts or a child consistently misbehaves, but it is important to do so in order to help the child make connections between feelings and actions so that he or she can begin to make better decisions.