Effective Treatment Intervention For Elementary Aged Children With Disruptive Behaviors

The client is in the sixth grade and in special education. His likes include videogames, cartoons, music, and drawing. One of his favorite hobbies includes learning to play the piano. He hopes to one day become an artist. The client currently lives at Grandma’s Place, which is a temporary shelter and safe haven for children age twelve and under who have been abused and/or neglected and are awaiting reunification or placement with a foster family. The client is in need of a behavioral management plan due to frequent angry, defiant, and violent outbursts that negatively interferes with his

Play therapy is a form of therapy where children can’t act out their fantasies and express their feelings or experiences and are simply encouraged to do so through play, abetted by a therapist's interpretations.

With the prevention of mental and physical health difficulties and the advancement of well-being and health, there is emphasis on reducing the breach between mental health needs that are not met among youngsters and teenagers and operational evidence-based services to meet them (Rones and Hoagwood 2000; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 1999; U.S. Public Health Service 2000 as cited in Flaspohler, Meehan, Maras, & Keller, 2012). Despite evidence that school viciousness and other main problems among youth may have declined or leveled off, a significant need for effective prevention programming is still necessary. Current data suggests that of “11.3 % of young people in this country, about 7.4 million youth altogether, have at least one diagnosable emotional, behavioral, or developmental condition; 40 % of these youth are diagnosed with two or more of these conditions” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 2010).

For the prevent component of the behavioral intervention Environmental Supports and Increased Non-contingent Reinforcement techniques were selected. These techniques were chosen in order to help support John refrain from engaging in the socially unacceptable flicking behavior. In order to prevent John from engaging in the flicking behavior, the teacher should equip John with a squeezy ball. The teacher should chat with John upon his arrival and encourage him to utilize his squeezy ball. According to research, “ To replace maladaptive behaviors, are sound educational choices grounded in learning theory and supported by empirical evidence” (Dooley, Wilczenski, & Torem, 2001, p. 58). Providing the optimal antecedent conditions will help support John as he acclimates himself to the replacement behavior. Teachers and staff should be encouraging, supportive, and implement the prevent strategies when they are most likely to occur. In John’s case this would be in the morning, afternoon, and arrival.

10). According to Landreth (2012), “Play therapy… facilitates the development of a safe relationship for the child… to fully express and explore self (feelings, thoughts, experiences, and behaviors) through play, the child’s natural medium of communication, for optimal growth and development”

Participants: M. Parker, Guidance Counselor, B. Michael, Social worker, Parent, D. Shaw Principal, S. Roberts, Behavioral Consultant, Classroom Teachers; D. Chemnitz and C. Ragusa

Haslam, D., Harris, S. (2011). Integrating Play and Family Therapy Methods: A Survey of Play

There are several in-home treatments for reducing child physical abuse (Barnett Miller-Perrin Perrin 184). With Project SafeCare parents actively acquire needed skills through techniques such as completing homework assignments and demonstrating (modeling) desirable parental behaviors (Barnett, Miller-Perrin, Perrin 185). Behavior - based treatment programs focuses on parent’s behavior, the child’s behavior, parent-child interactive behaviors, or all three (Barnett, Miller-Perrin, Perrin 185). With behavior-based treatments parents are taught the effects of reinforcement and punishment on children’s behavior, appropriate methods of delivering reinforcement and punishment, importance of consistency in discipline and so on. There are other treatments that deals with, children learning how to express their feelings, parents writing letters of apologies for being abusive, and the children writing about the traumatic elements of his/her abuse, and counseling (Barnett,

4) children are not born antisocial with behavior problems they become this way through social interactions with others at home and in the community. This shows how a PBSS is integral to a child's social development at a young age and can be viewed differently at the elementary level. According to a study done on grades k-5 doing a pre and post study which examined program outcomes of student problem behavior and social skills, based on teachers’ perspectives, before and after early behavioral intervention services, results prove that this is very beneficial (Rineya & Bullock, 2012, p.1). Based on the assessment the researchers gave, 5th graders showed the least amount of improvement in behavior after intervention increasing just 2.91 from their original mean average (Rineya & Bullock, 2012, p.13). This shows a drop in corrective behavior once a child is leaving elementary age and entering into middle school and formative years. The importance of behavioral and social intervention at the elementary level is important to a child's success throughout the rest of their schooling and

I found this chapter to be very informative and another good resource for learning about the different types of play therapy. First, it discussed the directive approach, the toys/materials, and then the skills. It also had a great section for cultural sensitivity, which is very important in all types of therapy. I think both directive and non-directive have pros and cons. Additionally, it is very important to use non-directive first to see were the client is coming from. This is how I start my other forms of therapy as well by using a client-center approach first than gradually moving towards becoming more directive if needed. It is also important based on why the client is being brought in for play therapy. Play therapy is the systematic use of a theoretical model to establish an interpersonal process in which play therapists use the therapeutic powers of play to help clients prevent or resolve psychosocial difficulties and achieve optimal growth (Kottman, 2011). This is done by using directive or non-directive play. Both types of play therapy are important and I will discuss this below.

The effectiveness of play therapy comes from the integration of play based skills into the day-to-day family life interactions.

Sample: Participants included 166 children and their parents. They were referred to the study based on their disruptive behavior while in a children’s mental

Children develop through their play and it is essential for their physical and mental development. When children are engaging in play behavior they are able to express themselves and communicate through their various actions. In children with ADHD play therapy can allow them to expel excess energy as well as organize their movements and behavior. Play therapy also allows a child with ADHD to experiment with consequences in a safe environment.

Counseling may involve children into drawing, building structures, dressing up with costumes themes, playing with cards or catching a ball. By using the interactive nature of play, trust is stablished between counselor and child. Former most, aim to feasible communication and problems’ resolution. However, it is important to note that there is a wide spectrum in counseling theories play therapy approaches. For instance, an approach that will be based in play’s emphasize solely, while others approach will integrate play and verbal communication as part of addressing the issues (Kottler & Sheppard, 2015).

Participants in this study included children from 10 elementary schools, three middle schools, one high school, two alternative educational academies, and one city-county day care center in school districts in southwest suburban areas. The students in this study were referred for severe disruptive behaviors. All participants had a behavior management plan; however, both teacher and administers deemed the plan as