Happy Kids, Cathy Glass [best ebook reader for ubuntu .TXT] 📗

tasks to do – for example, drawing or going on the computer – rather than completing the work the class has been set. One child I looked after who was very challenging at school was regularly kept occupied in the art room after he had been removed from the class for disruptive behaviour. This gave him the clear message that if he played up he could paint. If a child has to be removed from the classroom, then give them the same work as the class, and if he or she refuses to do the work, don’t offer an alternative but impose a sanction.

If a difficult child continually demands attention in class, there is a great temptation to give it to him. Don’t. Tell the child you will be with him or her in a moment, and see to another child first who is sitting patiently with their hand up; then return to the demanding child. If the child’s demands are always met, then the level of demands will increase.

No discussion

Don’t ever enter into debate with a child who is challenging you, whether it is about the work set, something you have asked the child to do or the child’s behaviour. Likewise, don’t bargain with or bribe a child to do as you have Requested. You can give a short reason for your decision by all means, but you are not required to explain yourself or your actions. Modern liberal attitudes towards children have encouraged all adults to feel that they have to give constant explanations to children; they don’t. Give a reason, but not an explanation. As an adult and a teacher you are in charge, you give the instructions as to what the child or class has to do and the children follow your instructions; in other words, they do as they are told.

Teaching assistants

Make sure that your classroom assistants deal with a challenging child in the same way that you do. A well-meaning teaching assistant can unintentionally undermine your authority and discipline by pandering to a child’s demands in order to keep him or her quiet. Have regular meetings with your assistants and ensure that you are all working to the same guidelines in managing difficult behaviour as well as the syllabus. This is obvious, but it doesn’t always happen with the huge workload staff carry.

Children’s home life

Be aware of any factors in a child’s life that might be affecting their behaviour, but don’t let those factors become an excuse for unacceptable behaviour. Some of the children I foster are not disciplined or sanctioned at school as they should be because the staff feel sorry for them, because they are in care and come from a deprived or abusive background. Obviously be sensitive to what the child has suffered – for example, a child who has been sexually abused might not want to change for PE with the rest of the class. But generally what the child needs from school, in addition to education, is the security of a clear routine and boundaries, just as they do at home.

Class dynamics

Be aware of group dynamics in the class and change where a child sits if necessary. ‘Birds of a feather flock together’ and challenging children will gravitate towards each other, and thus be more difficult to control and discipline. Teachers sometimes sit children with similar needs at the same table so that they can share a teaching assistant, or because they are at the same stage academically. If the needs of the children include behavioural issues, this won’t work, unless the teaching assistant is highly experienced. It is far better to alter your seating plan so that children with challenging behaviour sit as far away from each other as possible, for as long as is necessary until their behaviour settles.

Use time out

Time out can be used effectively, either for the whole class (although you should not leave the classroom) or for a single child who has become disruptive. If the whole class has become unruly, then call them to order and have everyone sit in silence for five minutes to calm down and reflect on their unacceptable behaviour. I’ve seen many teachers struggle on, raising their voices higher and higher over an unruly class, when five minutes’ quiet time would have brought them all back to order. If one child has erupted, remove him or her (with an assistant) from the class, to the quiet room if the school has one, or to a quiet area if not. The assistant should stay with the child but not interact with him or her. Quiet time is a time to reflect and calm down before the child is allowed to rejoin the class.

Respect

Always show children in class respect, no matter how difficult their behaviour is, and don’t make fun of a child in front of the class as a way of managing unruly behaviour. I know it’s tempting (for your own sanity if nothing else), but it will take a long time for the child to forgive or forget that he or she has been made to look foolish in front of his or her peer group. And of course insist that children always show you respect, both in the way they act towards you and what they say.

Respectful behaviour applies both in the classroom and outside it. If a child calls out a rude or impertinent remark while passing you in the corridor (which happens more in secondary than primary schools), deal with it straight away by calling over the pupil. If you ignore it, news will travel fast through those pupils who have heard the disrespect and your reputation will suffer. A walk through any school corridor at break time reveals those teachers who have the respect of the children and those who don’t. Either doors are held open, with the children standing aside to let the member of staff pass, or there is a ‘free for all’, with the member of