Biophysical Approach
Chapter 8
What is the biophysical
approach
• Behavior is influenced by genetic or
biochemical processes in the body
• How might the body influence behavior?
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Stress?
Medical condition?
Medication?
Nutrition?
• What interventions can we implement
related to the body?
Situations We All Share
• Remember to have compassion and
empathy for student situations:
– Divorce, separation, safety, health concerns,
grades, changing bodies, moving, teasing,
friends…
Medication
• Confidentiality
– Bound by the HIPAA law (health insurance portability and
accountability act)
– Cannot disclose medical information to 3rd parties
– Access to information as part of IEP team
• Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA,
1990)
– Policies and procedures for ensuring confidentiality of
information collected, used, or maintained about a student
with disabilities
• Watch for over-medication
– What might be some signs
Types of Medication
• Antidepressants
– May retard bone development in children (SSRI, selective serotonin reuptake
inhibitor)
– Common ones: Zoloft, Lexapro, Paxil, Prozac, Wellbutrin
• Tranquilizers – reduce emotional arousal
– Thioridazine, Xanax
• Stimulations – excite CNS, similar to amphetamines but released
gradually.
– Ritalin, Adderall, Dexedrine
– Ritalin is the fourth most abused drug in the country behind marijuana,
heroin, and cocaine.
Medication, Disabilities, and
Behavior
• Disabilities that May affect Behavior:
– Emotional Disturbance
– Attention-Deficit (ADD) / Hyperactivity
Disorder (ADHD)
– Traumatic Brain Injury
– Autism
– Prenatal exposure to alcohol or drugs
– Many others
Approximately 15-20% of the students in special education programs
Receive one or more behavior-modifying medications (Forness et al., 1999)
Nutrition
• Behavioral issues related to nutrition may include
hyperactivity and allergic reactions (asthma, more
hyperactivity).
• Programs:
– snack attack (elementary classrooms earn points depending on how many
healthy snacks students bring to school, snack attack days not announced in
advance.
– whoa, go, slow – Students say whoa when examining a food choice, then
either go or slow depending on the nutritional value of the food (apple = go).
• What are five nutrition general nutritional
recommendations you may want to post/paint in the
gymnasium?
– Write answers in your notes (don’t turn page over)
Answers
• What are some nutritional suggestions
you could give your classes?
– Balance your diet, eat lean foods (watch
fatty intake), increase natural/complex
foods, limit sugar intake (glycemic factor),
portion control, high fiber intake, drink
water, eat fruit/vegetables, be physically
activity, eat breakfast, utilize food
pyramid…
Nutrition
• Food choices and amount of food influence how
one feels, thinks, behaves:
– Poor impulse control
– Tendencies toward violence
– Hyperactivity
• Influences behavior within 30-90 minutes
• Nutritional Evaluation Form (#6, p. 180)
• Develop a comprehensive school wellness policy
– Required by federal and state law
– PE/health teachers should be the executor of this law.
• Recess before lunch
– http://opi.mt.gov/schoolfood/recessBL.html
Misc Suggestions
• Introverted Students – progress from one
on one, to small group, to larger group
• Easily frustrated – help individuals
overcome difficulty by providing
assistance or modifying the activity for
individualized instruction:
– Use different teaching styles and task
difficulty in the same class
Biophysical Approach in Action
• Relaxation
– Whole class units which are less hectic (yoga)
– Relaxation training (proven to decrease disruptive behaviors)
• Log sheet on page 179, exercises on page 147-148
– Music
– Take 5 chair, when students are having difficulty coping
• Medication
– Educate yourself about common medications and side-effects. Make
referrals when necessary. Ask questions of students and examine the IEP.
• Nutrition
– Discuss proper diet and post information on gym walls
– Send home information to parents
– Relate activities to nutrition:
• Collect the vegetables (collect bean bags from other hoops)
• Clean the arties (like clean house except with a circle of jump ropes to represent
arteries, bean bags to represent fat)
Biophysical Approach in Action
• Relaxation
– Whole class units which are less hectic (yoga)
– Relaxation training (proven to decrease
disruptive behaviors)
• Log sheet on page 179, exercises on page 147-148
– Music
– Take 5 chair, when students are having difficulty
coping
Biophysical Approach in Action
• Medication
– Educate yourself about common medications and sideeffects. Make referrals when necessary. Ask questions
of students and examine the IEP.
• Nutrition
– Discuss proper diet and post information on gym walls
– Send home information to parents
– Relate activities to nutrition:
• Collect the vegetables (collect bean bags from other hoops)
• Clean the arties (like clean house except with a circle of jump
ropes to represent arteries, bean bags to represent fat)
Biophysical Approach in
Action
What is imagery?
•Form of simulation that involves
recalling from memory pieces of
information stored from experience and
shaping these pieces into meaningful
images.
•Involves all senses: visual, kinesthetic,
auditory, tactile, olfactory
Uses of imagery
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•
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Improve concentration
Build confidence
Control emotional response
Acquire and practice sport skills
Acquire and practice strategy
• Types of imagery
– Internal – imagine the execution of a skill or behavior from
your own vantage point.
– External – view yourself from the perspective of an external
observer (like watching yourself on video)
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity
Disorder (ADHD)
• Approximately 3-7% of school-aged population
has ADHD (APA, 2000)
ADHD is more common in boys than girls
– 3:1 ratio
• Teaching Suggestions include:
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*Develop self-control
Verbal praise and tokens
Relaxation training to focus on task
Other methods discussed in course
Applications
• Develop a Behavior Intervention Plan
(BIP) for a student you have worked with
or are working with at this time.
(Figure 8.4 p.158)