Hello readers, I am Aliya and I am here to share some amazing behaviour management tipswith you. All these years I have been with young children and have experienced many different situations, where I have applied these behaviour management tips, and I am eager to share that with you today.
As an educator you should always remember a simple word, Diversity. We all are humans yet different in our own ways, our behaviour differ, our physical appearances differ, our cultures and family backgrounds differ and what not. Maria Montessori said, “Every child is unique” I’m sure you must have noticed uniqueness in every child you have come across. Hence, it’s difficult to manage every individual child in a similar way. You will have to build your own strategies, by analysing the behaviour of the child.
However these 5 strategies shall help you in coping up with most common behaviour problems and at the same time managing the class decorum.
- Replace punishment with expression of your feelings: I know it’s very easy to get frustrated with young children’s annoying behaviour. But hey, you are an Early years educator, you have to be patient. So what can you do? You need not punish them. But simply express what you feel and what you expect them to do.
For example, use “I” statements and not “You” statements with your kids. Say, “I am very much upset today, because we all broke up the discipline and ran to the class. Some of us also got hurt. State further, “I expect my children to use walking feet to class.”
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Encourage autonomy: Let your children make choices, “Are you in the mood for making a tower or scribbling?” Scaffold them but not make them dependent. “A box can be difficult to open. It may help if you try opening up from the other side.” Do not rush to answer their questions, but instead direct them towards thinking more about it, “that’s very interesting, what do you think it could be?”
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Praise and Self-esteem: Always be open to describe what you see and what you feel about your children’s work. Be specific yet descriptive in your feedbacks. This will make them feel more appreciated and involved in the activity avoiding the behaviour they otherwise show up in class. For example, “I can see combination of 4 different and bright colours in your artwork. I can see something in that blue pond, is that a duck?” “It’s a pleasure to see you put so much effort in this artwork.”
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Positive labels and roles: Grab opportunities where you can show your child a his/her new self so they feel appreciated. “That’s your favourite toy and it’s with you since you joined school.” You are praising them to be responsible. Always try and model the behaviour you would like to see in them. “I lost this time. But I would be a good sport next time.” This would encourage them in a new way altogether.
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To encourage participation: The best way to avoid any kind of behaviour is to make your child participate and co operate with you in everything you do. You must be wondering how. So first describe what you see or describe your problem, “The toys are all scattered on the floor.” Now talk about how it feels, “The class looks very messy, because of these toys.” Point to the toys as you talk about it. Now say, “we don’t like a messy class, so let us together pick them up and keep them at their right place.” Start doing the work with them.
I hope these tips brings in more comfort and easiness in your work. Do use these tips in your classroom and tell us in comments how did they work for you.
I will be back soon with more interesting content for you. Meanwhile I wish you all the luck. Keep reading.
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