where can i find ways to discipline children in a day care setting ages 2-5 years old?

Question

i am a teacher with the need to have new and leagal ways to discipline some "bad apples" in my class.

Answer 1

Be kind to them and make yourself a favourite teacher within them.

Answer 2

If they are aware that they are being "bad" ... do not scold them. Simply make a quiet area, away from the other noisey kids where they can "relax" .. sometimes kids that young become over stimulated and just need a place to have a "time out" . The worse thing you can do is to scold or tell the kid they are being "bad" at that age .. it will only make the kid feel worse, unhappy, and cause you more grief. Just say : "Johnny, you look a little tired ... would you like a time out ? " Say it as a "positive" thing .. almost like a treat for the child. Have a few toys and coloring books in a quiet area of the room .. they may just need a brief nap .. kids are emotionally fragile, esp. at that age. Whatever you do about it .. make sure it is in the vein of a "positive" experience.

Answer 3

If you work for a company, you should have rules about what is appropriate. Being a preschool teacher is tough. I do it every day. You need to remember where each child comes from and what is causing the behavior. Each child needs a different approach to their behavioral issues. No child is a "bad apple". They are very frustrating and complicated, but will come around if you are patient and focus in on their individual needs. I have used reward boards as a tool to improve behavior, manners, and social interactions. If you present an atmosphere of happiness and understanding you will have an easier time. Plus, get the parents involved!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Answer 4

A great book I got when I started teaching preschoolers, was A Practical Guide to Solving Preschool Behavior Problems. You can find it on Amazon.com. It has real-world ideas for teachers, including how to do observations and find out what the real problem is behind the behavior. No child is inherently "bad", just "off course" on their behavior. Most behaviors are a symptom of another problem, whether it is the need for attention, avoidance of something (trying to get out of work), or a sensory issue (doesn't like the feel/smell/sight of something). This age is the toughest to deal with... they are still struggling with autonomy, trying to figure out how far they can push, having to deal with other children who are the same age and developmental level, and learning new things every day. No wonder they get moody! Learning to tune into your children and be able to anticipate their moves is critical, as well as keen observation. Take some time, step back from the situation, and you may find some antecedents (precursers- indicators that a situation is about to accelerate) you didn't think of before. The best behavior modification is in the prevention. After that, you try modeling correct behavior "We touch our friends softly, like this...", and showing them what you WANT them to do. These little guys take a lot of patience, so keep that in mind as you work with them. It can take up to 20 trials of reminding them about behavior expectations and showing them how to do it properly before you will get results. Check out the book... it is funny and helpful.

Answer 5

Put them in time out.....place a few chairs off to the side away from each other and have them face the wall. When a child needs discipline have them sit in the time out chair. Keep in mind kids that age dont sit very long in one place. So you cant say to a 2 year old "sit there for 15 minutes".
Reward them for good behaviour, set up charts for them and each day they are good and dont get in trouble add a start beside their name. At the end of the week if they was good the whole week reward them.
Some of them kids need extra attention so if they are acting out spend more time working with them one on one.
Talk to their parents, letting them know their kids are acting out in class. Likewise talk to the kids about it.

Answer 6

Eva Essa's book mentioned below "A Practical Guide to Solving Preschool Behavior Problems" is a great resource as is any book by Grace Mitchell, especially "A Very Practical Guide to Discipline with Young Children".

Often if children in your class are having behaviour problems, it's due to the environment and/or the teacher's expectations. Look at when and where these behaviours are occuring. What can YOU change that will help? For example, we gave up circle time with our 2-3 year olds because many were not developmentally ready to sit still for any length of time. With my after school kids (older, but same idea) I gave them outdoor play time BEFORE expecting them to come in and sit down for snack.

Catch them being good. Let them know you are proud and pleased when they are well-behaved, but also let them know how it benefits them. "Look how happy Joe is because you let him have a turn. He likes playing with you when you take turns." rather than just "Great job!" (Try reading Alfie Kohn's Punished By Rewards)

I was the program director in a program for 2-5 yr olds. When I started, "GO TO TIME-OUT!" was the ONLY discipline method being used. The children would be left to sit and then allowed to come back at the teacher's whim. I introduced problem solving/conflict resolution. For example: "Hey - it's not OK to throw toys. You must be really angry. What happened?" Often the child would say something like "I was playing with that and he took it." Then the teacher would talk to both children and help them come up with a resolution. It's amazing what they will come up with when a teacher just asks "What can you do about this?" Sometimes kids are just angry or whatever and not ready to resolve things. That's when the "time out" is handy. Not as punishment, but as a chance for children to calm down. The teacher lets the child calm down and then talks to him/her before the child returns.
Teacher "Why did you need a time out?" Child "I was mad and hit Sally."
T "Is it OK to hit people?"
C "No"
T "What can you do next time?"
C "I'll use my words and tell her I'm mad." or "I'll get a teacher to help me."
T "Okay - do you feel ready to join us?"
If yes, T gives a big smile and says "All right!" or something like that. If no, T can say "That's ok - you just come back when you feel ready."
It DOES work. After a couple of months, I suddenly realized I hadn't seen a child in time-out for several days!

Answer 7

You do not state the methods you have already tried to implement with these children.

What does particularly strike me from your question is the fact that you have already pigeon holed these children..... they feed off of you as their teacher..... and all I can sense is your negativity.... how does that help them gain respect for you? And respect is the key to being able to discipline any child. If you can't gain their respect then nothing you try to do will work.

Choose one method, probably one you have already tried.... and stick to it.... be consistent everytime.... These children are testing the boundaries, probably more than most, so you need to ensure that your boundaries and rules are firmly in place and understood... make it part of your daily routine to go through the rules with all of the children every day... talk about what will happen if these rules get broken...that way you are not singling them out... but they will know exactly where they stand... you then need to follow through so they understand that there are consequences to their actions.

Time out should be used sparingly... ie if they have hurt another child, or placed them in danger. You will need to put in the extra yards with these children, find out what they like, where they excel... and focus on these things, set up a rewards chart with them.... then the positive behaviours can be rewarded with something they really like.

Give them responsibility for something in the classroom.... ie a job that is their special job to do.... but they need to show appropriate behaviour to be able to continue to do it.

I cannot link you to any websites, but I have had 12 years teaching experience in schools, preschools, kindergartens and childcare centres.... with behaviour management being a main focus and one of my teaching strengths... and please remember RESPECT is the key!

Answer 8

Have them sit in a chair and watch the classroom, ask them if they see any other children hitting or pushing or whatever the problem is. This will make them realize that we don't do that negative action in our school and will also want them to be able to join the rest of the class. If the action happens again. Tell them that they have to stay next to you for the rest of the day.

Answer 9

You are no teacher, if you need to ask that question. You don't know how to 'discipline' under fives, call children that you are not stimulating correctly 'bad apples'!
I think you need some training!

Answer 10

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Answer 11

I once found a powerpoint presentation about implementing behavior therapy, it has been noted to be extremely effective esp. with " bad apples" . If you look up behavior analysis and therapy you might find the information right for you.