Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/high-quality-guidance-policies/5023242/
“I don’t think that I can take it anymore. I really love working with the children, but these behavior problems are so frustrating.
Yesterday, James pushed over the dollhouse during nap time and woke up half the children. I feel like all I do all day is try to keep the children safe.”
“Today Emily hid under the climbing structure and refused to come inside after outdoor play, which threw our whole schedule off.
This is not why I decided to become a teacher. I wish we had more support with how to deal with challenging behaviors in the classroom.”
In our experience working with teachers of young children, we have heard many comments such as these. Here we define challenging behavior as any repeated pattern of behavior that interferes with children’s engagement in social interactions and learning. These behaviors include physical and verbal aggressions, prolonged tantrums, property destruction, self-injury, noncompliance, disruptive vocal and motor behavior, and withdrawal (Powell, Fixsen, & Dunlap, 2003). Both teachers and administrators report that dealing with children with challenging behaviors is one of the most difficult aspects of their job, and often leads to burnout, stress, and the decision to leave the profession. In addition, children identified with aggressive ...