Working With Children Who Have Behavioral Difficulties

It is very important to recognise that parents and practitioners have different kinds of relationships with the children in their care. Practitioners need to develop consistent, warm and affectionate relationships with children especially babies but they should not seek to replace the parents. Babies need to be with the same people each and every day to develop social relationships. This is why the EYFS requires all early years settings and schools to implement a key person system. Parents and practitioners have one thing in common that is very important: they all want the best for the child. The roles involved are not the same yet they are complementary. Parents know their own child best. Practitioners have knowledge of general child development.

I have worked with the child on a one to one basis several times and the child reacts well to positive praise and receives stickers on a chart for good work. The child has an ‘in’ and ‘out’ tray for work to give them a sense of accomplishment when they have completed something. The child does not appear to have friendship issues and the other children in the class accept the child for who they are. The child has a playground buddy from the upper school that helps them during the playtimes when problems are more likely to occur. It is hoped that the plan the Behaviour Support Unit provides will give those who work with the child a clear framework to work in to provide the constancy that is needed to help alleviate the child’s behaviour.

| Demonstrate ways of supporting children and young people with behavioural difficulties to identify and agree behaviour targets

When working with children with behavioural difficulties it is important that practitioners respects the families culture, customs and values. Some children may grow up in a family where they value their father so it is important that practitioners take this into account when working with children with behavioural problems, as the child may listen more to male members of staff than female. Also some children may have been brought up by their grandparents where they are usually spoilt by them and get what they want and in the setting they cant always get their own way. When working with children with behavioural difficulties it is important that the practitioners have some knowledge on the child's background for example the child might have

It is essential that anyone working with children can identify if a child is having problems and might need extra support, this can be achieved through careful observation in the classroom and playground. If, a teaching assistant or adult in school, were to have any concerns about a particular child they should initially go to the class teacher and share their thoughts but it is important that they maintain as much confidentiality as possible and would need to find an appropriate time to discuss this. This should then be brought up with the pupil’s parents in a sensitive way and at an appropriate time, e.g. parent’s evening.

Some children in an early years setting may present with delayed development, or emotional or social difficulties. This may result from adverse early experiences, like witnessing domestic violence, or growing up with a parent who has mental health difficulties. Extra support could include helping a mother join a ‘stay and play’ group, to make friends and find support or working with the clinical psychology service to give advice about bedtimes or mealtimes. This work can be co-ordinated under the

Behaviour support– for some children this is about learning to communicate and develop social skills. For others, it means support or counselling in a separate quiet space that has a balance between privacy and visibility for supervision.

Mainstream culture in America is constantly evolving. Family structures have changed over time with more single parent families. Support from extended family members have become minimum. Many parents are isolated with limited resources and support. This is especially true for parents who have children with behavioral problems. Parents that have children with behavior problems experience additional stress that contributes to their parenting abilities, their perceptions of their children, their relationship or bond with their children and their children’s behavior.

Children who have behavioral, emotional and social difficulties may be withdrawn or isolated, disruptive and disturbing and they may be hyperactive.They may lack concentration and have immature social skills. Challenging behavior may arise from other complex special needs. Children who have these needs may require a structured learning environment, with clear boundaries for each activity. They may need extra space to move around and to ensure a comfortable distance between themselves and others. They may take extreme risks or have outbursts and need a safe place to calm down.Behavior support or counseling may take place in a quiet supportive

In order to apply the RTI approach in behavioral interventions relationships with the child and the family need to be fostered. In the different tiers behavior strategies such as promoting functional communication, teaching methods that support self-regulation, and using a social curriculum. According to Bayat et al. (2010) “screening for social-emotional problems in preschool children should include social competence goals linked to curriculum, use of functional behavior analysis records, ecological interviews, child observation and use of parent and teacher reports to start a behavior intervention plan. “Designing an appropriate behavioral intervention plan should occur in collaboration with behavior consultants, special educators, and parents/caregivers (Bayat et al.,

with emotional and behavioural difficulties’. British Journal of Special Education, vol. 26, no.1, pp. 50–53.

· Behaviour difficulties are often caused by underlying conditions, including mental health problems, underlying disabilities, and problems outside of school. Schools should look at the underlying causes of behaviour, as well as having appropriate disciplinary routes.

I work with children who as difficulty coping their behaviour. These children are affected by numerous crises in their life, such as seen a parent being abuse, parents getting a divorce and moving from one home to the next. I help to regulate their behaviour, by creating goals and strategies at home and at school. Without putting goals and strategies in place, (Kleespies, 2009) stated

In my opinion, clinician directed intervention would be the most efficient. The child would be guided throughout the session and would be able to focus on what needs to be improved. Despite the unnaturalness of the intervention, the clinician maybe able to create familiarity with the child, and make the child feel comfortable in the setting. The drawback with this option would definitely be whether the child could use what is learned through

Responding to concerns is a very important step. This needs to be done in a professional manner. This first steps to take would be to document what we see and hear. Why we have concerns about a child development, including times and dates of concerns. This information will then need to be pasted on to a supervisor who will take the necessary steps to seek help on the matter or discuss concerns with the parents of that child or young person. This could just be some advice to the parents to help solve the issues of concerns, so that it can be resolved quickly in order for the child or young person to get back on track. There may be a time where the supervisor or manager feels the child could use the help of other professional such as councillors