I’ve been talking about the Big “D” – Discipline. When dealing with annoying distracting, and harmful behaviors we should always follow specific guidelines concerning our overall principles and philosophy about children, how we feel about behaviors (tolerance and zero tolerance) and as always, the basic nature of child development.

Start with Your Principles & Philosophy – The best programs for young children share a philosophy that includes the basic facts that each child is good simply by the act of existing and as such, deserves the opportunity to grow, develop, and reach his and her optimal natural strength potential in an environment of safety; and every family deserves to be treated with dignity and respect and with great regard for its integral role in each child’s education.

Take it Nice and NAEYC* – Follow the NAEYC Code of Ethics, which asks us to:

• Appreciate childhood as a unique and valuable stage of the human life cycle
• Base our work on knowledge of how children develop and learn
• Appreciate and support the bond between the child and family
• Recognize that children are best understood and supported in the context of family, culture, community, and society
• Respect the dignity, worth, and uniqueness of each individual (child, family member, and colleague)
• Respect diversity in children, families, and colleagues
• Recognize that children and adults achieve their full potential in the context of relationships that are based on trust and respect

Adopting this philosophy and this set of ethics should guide us in determining how to react to unwanted behaviors.

*National Association for the Education of Young Children

http://www.naeyc.org/about/mission

Zero Tolerance – At the installation of Loretta Lynch as US Attorney General, President Obama said, “it is not just being tough on crime, but being smart about crime, that matters”. Teachers need to be smart about discipline by using a behavior management system that motivates each child to behave well, not out of fear, but out of a desire to do what is right for himself and his community.

The most important part of the process of dealing with disruptive or damaging behavior is to remember that the object of the process of behavior management is to eliminate the behavior from the child, not the child from the classroom.

While there is zero tolerance for the behaviors, there is never zero tolerance for any child.

Child Development – We need to match our reactions to behaviors to the age/developmental level of the child and always treat children individually but consistently. The ‘rules’ apply to everyone, but the reactions to breaking the rules may not always be identical. This sounds, according to every five year old at some point in time, “NOT FAIR!” but as I say to those fives, “I’m sorry it seems that way to you, but that’s the way it is.”

Next Blog: Reacting to Unwanted Behaviors 2 – Developmental Guidelines