Behavior Guidance in ECLC
Rationale
`Discipline‟ usually refers to methods of controlling and punishing children in order to socialize them.
This implies that adults `do something‟ to children. The ECLC policy does not adhere to this style of
behavior management. We do not "discipline" children. Rather, we work with children as they
gradually construct their own convictions about relations with others. Construction, not instruction, is
our goal for children.
IN ECLC we also believe that all children need a safe and secure environment and that this is created
through positive interactions with adults. We recognize that guiding children‟s behavior can be
challenging for both teachers and parents. Young children are just beginning to learn how to regulate
their own emotions and understand how their behavior impacts on others. ECLC recognizes that this
is a life long process and that it begins in early childhood
Scope
All ECLC staff, parents and families.
Purposes
 To build a community of caring people (children, parents, teachers and administrators) that
support children‟s social and emotional development.
 To consider children‟s unique temperaments, socio cultural, family context and language abilities
when implementing behavior guidance strategies
 To guide and support children to control their own emotions and behaviors
 To provide many opportunities for children to practice and master appropriate behaviors
 To respect different child rearing approaches and at the same time, establish consistency in
behavior guidance strategies where possible between home and school.
 To implement a set of developmentally appropriate guidelines to meet the needs of ECLC
children in all grade levels.
Procedures
Nursery
The Nursery has a unique open door policy (where children can move freely between classes for
parts of the day and also outdoors/indoors). This is an important part of the nursery‟s environmental
philosophy. It is based on the notion that in order to be responsive and supportive to children‟s social
and emotional development, one must develop reciprocal attachment relationships.
Teachers in Nursery classes understand that 2 year olds are always on the move, have a limited
vocabulary and don‟t often like to share toys. They understand that young children need to be
physically and emotionally safe and that it is a big step for them to learn to do things for themselves in
a socially acceptable way.
Teachers in nursery classes therefore, guide children’s behavior through a range of
preventative and concrete role modeling strategies.
Nursery Strategies
1. Distraction- The Goal is to temporality distract a child from the current problem If a child is doing
something unacceptable (a safety matter) or fighting over a toy, the teacher will call attention to
another activity in order to distract their attention.
2. Redirection- the goal is to substitute one toy that is being used inappropriately for another. For
example if a child is throwing the blocks the teacher will say “blocks are for building not throwing.
Let‟s find a ball or bean bag that you can throw into the basket instead”
3. Role Modeling – The goal is to have children imitate appropriate behavior. This involves
encouraging expected behaviors and talking as well as actions. Even though toddlers may not
fully understand everything the teacher says they will begin to understand that there are reasons
for doing things a certain way. Role modeling includes following safety rules, washing hands,
being seated when eating and listening to each other. At this age and stage of development it is
difficult for children to problem solve by themselves so teachers will offer them solutions and
demonstrate the use of that solution.
4. The concept of Sharing - Sharing is not something that toddlers do very well. Toddlers do enjoy
playing next to other children, but are just beginning to learn to play WITH other children. The
goal is to gradually increase their ability to master this skill. Teachers prepare children for this
goal by providing several similar toys as this can prevent conflict situations and encourage
children to cooperate and communicate better. Toddlers usually find it difficult to share because
they don‟t really understand what ownership means. They may think sharing a toy is the same as
giving it away.
5. Ignoring - The goal in this strategy is to have the child stop the undesirable behavior by not
paying attention to it. This can be effective in some situations with older nursery children.
Withholding attention when negative behaviors are being exhibited (tantrums) often means that
without the desired attention, children will eventually quit whatever they‟re doing.
6. Setting Clear Limits- The goal is to provide consistent and clear boundaries, in which children
can explore, play and learn. This gives children predictability, safety and security (emotionally and
physically). Routines are established and followed throughout the day however; they are also
flexible to accommodate children‟s needs and interests. The teachers understand that following
through can be frustrating as young children learn what is acceptable and what is not , managing
frustration however is part of their growth process.
7. Environment- Behaviors traditionally considered as `misbehaviors‟ are seen as „mistaken‟
behaviors. Nursery children do not misbehave on purpose; they are just beginning to learn the
process of self regulation so the goal is to create environments that minimize `mistaken‟
behaviors. Teachers constantly adapt indoor and outdoor spaces, ensure there are many alike
toys and are constantly observing. For example, if there is more conflict in one area of the
classroom than another, the teacher , may enlarge the space, provide more of the same
equipment or role model more in that area.
Handling Biting Incidents
Many children at this stage go through a period of biting. Sometimes it is to gain attention; they feel
frustrated, or are simply using their senses to experiment. It is important that we monitor and support
children going through this stage and reinforce language that tells them this is not socially acceptable.
Here are the steps taken by ECLC staff:
1. Intervene immediately and comfort the bitten child and administer first aid if necessary
2. Explain the biting child why biting is unacceptable-that it hurts the other child and show the bruise
or bite mark. Use words such as “that‟s biting” and “You may not bite children”
3. Shadow the biter for a time to make sure she/he do not repeat the incident with another child
4. Inform the parents of the child that has been bitten and complete an incident report if first aid has
been administered
5. Inform the parents of the child who has bitten and explore with them if this occurs in other
environments and how parents handle it. The aim is to reach a collaborative and consistent
approach in how everyone responds when biting occurs.
6. Discuss the situation with other staff to ensure the same strategies in managing biting occurs and
that the child who bites needs to be shadowed for a while by all staff
7. Evaluate routines and the environment for example, to ensure lack of same toys or too much
indoor time is causing the problem
8. Ensure strict confidence- staff will not disclose the identity of the child that bites and maintain
confidentiality in all biting matters.
Procedures
ECLC1 and ECLC2
As children reach a more advanced level of social and emotional maturity, they require support and
guidance to adopt acceptable ways to negotiate, cooperate and understand the needs and rights of
others. The goal as they progress from ECLC1 to ECLC2 is to become autonomous in their ability to
self-regulate their behaviors and to internalize a code of conduct. In other words, learning socially
acceptable behavior, being able to control their own behavior and develop the early stages of moral
autonomy.
This is achieved through collaborative and cooperative relationships within and outside the classroom.
The teacher establishes an atmosphere in which children feel that the teacher cares for them, enjoys
being with them, and respects them by taking their feelings, interests, and ideas into account. When
children experience the teacher's cooperation with them, they are likely to be willing to cooperate with
them.
Strategies used in ECLC1 and 2 build upon the skills children developed in the nursery classes. The
focus is now about promoting moral development, finding solutions to conflict situations, using
language to communicate effectively, managing emotions and devising a collaborative approach to
setting rules and deciding consequences.
In addition to the Strategies used in Nursery classes:
1. The use of inclusive language “our toys, our classroom, our rules” so that children develop a
sense of ownership and belonging.
2. The use of positive behavior guidance statements “walking feet’ as opposed to “no running” and
“inside voice” as opposed to “no shouting” etc
3. Teachers will focus on intervention methods that are solution orientated. They will look more
deeply into what is motivating mistaken behavior and adapt their strategies accordingly.
4. Teachers will encourage and provide the learning tools for children to verbalize their emotions
and label their feelings to others (peers, teachers and parents).
5. Adapt the environment to reduce the risk of `mistaken behaviors‟ and create spaces for quiet
active, social and alone times. Therefore, providing opportunities for children to take themselves
away from the group to have some quiet time when they need it.
6. Acknowledge that dual language learners require more opportunities to practice problem solving
techniques and therefore more role modeling, teaching children specific words to say and working
more closely with parents as needed.
7. Role modeling the process of problem solving and giving children the words they need to
negotiate and reach a solution to conflicts before they escalate. In addition, modeling and
teaching the idea that it‟s ok to make mistakes and learn from them.
8. Listen, discuss and negotiate class room rules and logical consequences with the children so that
ownership exists. The teacher can help children become conscious of a problem, make sure that
children agree and truly believe that a problem exists, and ask children for opinions about what to
do about the problem, with an emphasis on preventing future occurrences. Once the group has
agreed on a logical consequence, children are more likely to understand the logic of the
consequence.
9. Children exhibiting consistent inappropriate behavior will require closer observation, Assistant
Principal input, parental involvement and small realistic goal setting strategies to support self
regulation.
10. Conflict management requires higher level thinking skills and finding solutions to problems in
peaceful ways. This requires perspective taking, collaboration empathy and respect. Four
and five year olds will begin the process of learning these skills in ECLC1.