Transcript Positive Behavior Interventions

Communicating with Your
Kids: A Proactive
Approach for Discipline
Bette Nix,
Behavior Interventionist
Shelby County Schools
If a child doesn’t read, we TEACH
If a child doesn’t swim, we TEACH
If a child doesn’t multiply, we TEACH
If a child doesn’t drive, we TEACH
If a child doesn’t behave, we….uh…
TEACH? PUNISH?
Inappropriate Behavior
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Inappropriate behaviors can violate the
rights of others or jeopardize safety.
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They are self-defeating or self-damaging
and contrary to the requirement of the
situation.
 All
behavior has a purpose
(function)!!!!
Why do students/adults have
inappropriate behavior?
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Attention (negative/positive)
Anxiety
Acceptance/Affiliation
Self Expression
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Anger
Frustration
Sadness
To save face
Task avoidance
Gratification
Justice/Revenge
Medical issues
Unknown
What do you think children
may gain from the problem
behaviors?
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Attention? What kind of attention? From
whom?
Avoid an apparently difficult or boring activity?
Avoid teacher interaction?
Get control of a situation?
Avoid embarrassment in front of peers?
Does the “why” matter?
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When children have challenging
behaviors, we do not always know why.
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Even when we do, we may not be able
to change the cause, but we can still
work with the behavior.
PROACTIVE?
REACTIVE?
Focus on Proactive
Interventions
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Proactive Strategies
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Take place before an
event occurs, usually
based on previous
experience or
learning.
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Reactive Strategies
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Take place after an
event or stimulus,
usually in opposition to
a force or influence.
Typical (REACTIVE)
Discipline Strategies
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Re-direction
Talking to child
Screaming at child
Time-out
Taking away a privilege/grounding
Make threats
Corporal Punishment
Immediate & seductive
solution….”Get Tough!”
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Clamp down & increase monitoring
Re-re-re-review rules
Extend continuum & consistency of
consequences
Establish “bottom line”
...Predictable individual response
Ways to Escalate
Inappropriate Behaviors
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Raising your voice!
Intruding into the student’s personal space
Using sarcasm
Threatening
Lecturing
Nagging
Arguing with the student
Having the last word
Creating a power struggle!!!
Discipline vs. Punishment
Punishment
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Emphasizes power
Not always directly
related to the behavior
Implies moral judgment
Coercive
Threatens loss
Discipline
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Emphasis on realities of
social order
Logically related to
behavior
Separates deed from
doer
Treats child with dignity
Emphasizes care,
support, and love
Results we can expect
Punishment
 Fear
 Rebellion
 Sneakiness
 Self-doubt
 Resentment
 Desire for revenge
Discipline
 Security
 Cooperation
 Responsibility
 Self-discipline
 Resourcefulness
 Desire for
conciliation
Be proactive,
not reactive
Establishing an Environment for
Positive Behavior
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Try to understand what the behavior is
communicating (the underlying need)
Be firm, but always be fair
a)
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Don’t try to be a friend to your child
a)
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Fair doesn’t mean same
Be the adult
Work on becoming more consistent
Separate the child and the behavior
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Encourage independence through
problem solving
Avoid feeling sorry for the child
a) Show empathy
Do not be concerned about the “right”
discipline technique
Recognize who owns the problem
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Encourage responsibility from the child
Be sure expectations are clearly
explained
If discipline is needed, refuse to fight
or argue
Think About This
Kids aren’t born
“instant students”
We can’t assume they know how to act the way
we want them to act. The behavior we want needs to
first be taught to them.
Just as we teach math skills before we
expect them to perform math, so must
we teach basic behavior skills before
we can expect them to have those
skills.
Teaching Appropriate Behaviors
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Shape the behavior through instruction,
practice and correction.
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Praise should be given for successive
approximations, increase expectations
and thus praise, fading supports
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Silence is your most powerful tool!!! We talk to
our children too much in regards to
inappropriate behavior.
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When verbal instruction is needed, lower your
voice, give clear, concise instructions and
restore order.
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Be brief, simple and provide choices.
Students with Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
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Create an environment with predictability
and stability.
Clearly define areas to promote
organization. Avoid overcrowding. Use
care where distracting areas are placed.
Give clear cues to your child.
Keep work periods short and break
assignments into manageable tasks.
Students Engaging in
Disruptive Behavior
 Students
may be disrupting to
gain attention, power/control,
gain revenge, or project an
image of inadequacy.
Students that Seem to
Exhibit Low Self-Esteem
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Set a warm, supportive tone.
Consider the impact of your actions on your child.*****
Offer praise that is genuine and specific.
Bolster the child’s academic skills for success.
Assist the child in gaining an understanding of his/her
strengths and weaknesses.
Teach the child positive self-talk.
Take the child’s questions seriously.
Create opportunities for the child to feel important.
Choices for You
Closed Fist, Open Hand, or
Apathy
What creates the up-tight
closed fist feeling?
• Stress/Tension
• Feeling overwhelmed
• Traffic
• Administration/
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Teachers/Children
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Perfectionism
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Students/Adults not
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doing what is expected
Money
Anger
Fear
Too much to do
Standing in line
Difficult students
The need for control
Other???????
What creates the
open-handed feeling?
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Exercise
Spending time with
family
Reading
Singing
Rest/Enough Sleep
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Forgiveness
Compassion/
Empathy/Patience/
Love/Trust
Other?????
How do getting enough sleep, getting
enough exercise and doing things you enjoy
impact how you might deal with a crisis
situation?
Take Care of Yourself
Health Levels
Healthy
Unhealthy
The Unwanted Cycle
Unmet Need
Behavior
Our Response
Only dealing with the behavior or dealing with the behavior first, creates a cycle
and the behavior will continue
MCS developed by Glenwood, Inc.
Determine the thing that can
and shall be done…
…and then we shall find the
way.
-- Abraham Lincoln
It is easier to build strong children
than to repair broken men.
Frederick Douglass
We worry about what a child will be tomorrow
yet we forget that he or she is someone today.
--Stacia Tausher
Every student can learn,
just not on the same day
or the same way.
-- George Evans.
Will you be the
rock that
redirects the
course of the
river?
-- Claire Nuer.
Questions & Answers