Resources to Support Challenging Child Behavior

Embedding Sensory Input into the Classroom
Situation: 

How do I provide sensory breaks to a child during a busy classroom day without the child leaving his/her desk and missing important instructional time?

Talk About It Later Journal to Reduce Class Interruptions
Situation: 

I have a student with high functioning autism in my class and he often gets stuck on something that happened and wants to tell me about it in the middle of a lesson or when I am talking with somebody else.

 

He doesn’t seem to “let it go” unless I address it immediately, and if I don’t, he starts to whine and sometimes yell.

 

Sometimes I just can’t take the time to discuss the matter when he wants to…any ideas?

Mystery Motivator
Situation: 

I need some new, motivating ideas for reinforcing my students for appropriate behavior.

Pairing with Reinforcement
Situation: 

I teach a Life Skills class and was just told that I am getting a new student who reportedly is very difficult to teach. He has bitten and hit his teacher and destroyed his work area at his last school. I am nervous and want to know what activities would be best to have him complete his first day in my classroom.

De-Stress the Test Process
Situation: 

Many of my students stress when taking unit tests to the point that their grades do not demonstrate their abilities seen during class. What strategies can I give them to relax and not fail?

Repetitive Behaviors: Detection and Intervention – An Example
Situation: 

My child has multiple diagnoses including ADHD, PDD NOS, and OCD. He has many self-calming behaviors and vocal tics in school. He may clear his throat and ‘zone out.’ He may keep his fingers crossed. These behaviors are concerning me. What can I do to decrease them?

Substitutions for Sensory Seeking Screams
Situation: 

My son is non-verbal.  Recently he has begun screaming.  This is not out of anger, but to hear his own voice.  It is quite loud and can be very distracting at home to his siblings and out in public.  I don’t want to discourage his trying to communicate, so am not sure how to handle it.

Visual Chunking: Math
Situation: 

How do I stop my student who knows his math very well, from screaming and head banging when he receives a math paper?

Acknowledging Student Difficulties
Situation: 

When I give my student any challenging or new work, he gets very anxious and starts saying, “it’s too hard.” When I try to tell him it’s not that hard and that he can do it, he only gets more anxious and insistent that it is impossible and sometimes starts having behavior problems.