Supporting Positive Behaviour
The aim of this Nursery is to provide a safe, caring, relaxed and educational environment for children. All staff will be expected to comply with the behaviour standards established by the Nursery.
In dealing with unwanted behaviour, children will NEVER be punished by smacking, slapping or shaking. Members of staff will not do anything that will humiliate, frighten the children or deprive them of their rights. There are NO circumstances in which such punishment is justified. Physical restraint, such as holding, will only be used to prevent physical injury to any of the children and/or serious damage to property/resources. Following such instances, detailed account of what happened, what action was taken and by whom will be brought to the attention of the Manager and recorded on an incident form. The child’s parents will be informed on the same day.
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The Nursery routine should NEVER become more important than the needs of the children
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Children will never be deprived of their food at mealtimes
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Comfort objects will not be confiscated (when comfort object causes distress to other children, e.g. if they are constantly trying to grab it, possible solutions will be discussed with parents)
In dealing with unwelcome behaviour, we differentiate between developmentally appropriate behaviour and repetitive challenging behaviour.
Dealing with Developmentally Appropriate Behaviour
Nursery practitioners are expected to be familiar with the stages of child growth and development so that they may hold reasonable behavioural expectations. Some behaviour may be displeasing for adults, but should be considered acceptable and age appropriate, e.g. toddlers find it difficult to ‘share’ or take into account others’ feelings.
The Nursery has a set of basic ‘Nursery Rules’ in each room/area, which are discussed with the children regularly. The Nursery rules are talked about during group times and mentioned during everyday activities. Children flourish best in an orderly environment where they know what to expect and what is expected. Therefore, clear boundaries are set and adhered to in order to allow the children to develop a sense of belonging and security.
We concentrate on supporting positive behaviour rather than managing unwanted behaviour. Methods of supporting positive behaviour include:
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Specific praise and encouragement (e.g. “Thank you for…” or “That was kind, when you…”) when a child has achieved something. This helps children to make the transition from requiring an adult’s affirmation to their own self-affirmation and sense of self-achievement “I did it!”
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Discouraging staff from using blanket non-specific praise (e.g. “Well done!” or “Good boy!”). This avoids children seeking an adult’s affirmation and praise and discourages the thought that something is only worthy if an adult has told them it is ‘good’.
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Suggesting alternative acceptable behaviour when unwanted behaviour occurs
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Positive discussions during circle times
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Early intervention to prevent conflicts that children are yet unable to handle (e.g. sharing for very young ones)
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Distraction to avert unwelcome behaviour
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‘Planned ignoring’ of unwanted behaviour (as long as it does not harm or inconvenience other children)
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Specific rewards (only in some circumstances, e.g. stickers for potty training)
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Setting a good example (e.g. being kind and polite)
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Avoiding the use of ‘No’ and wording behaviour comment in a positive way, e.g. saying “walking feet, please” instead of “don’t run”
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Organising environment in a way that minimises any behaviour issues, for example, ensuring that an adequate number of toys/equipment is available to avoid conflicts
All staff ensure that methods are applied consistently, so that children are not given mixed messages and have the security of knowing what to expect. Behaviour guidance should be framed in positive language to enhance children’s self-esteem, encouraging them to believe that acceptance does not depend on their behaviour.
Practitioners should view each child in their care as a unique and special individual and recognise that children’s behaviour is an expression of feelings or an attempt to meet immediate or underlying needs.
Guiding Children in Finding Solutions
Practitioners will take the following actions if they notice a conflict:
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Staff approach calmly and stay at children’s level (use a calm voice and a gentle touch)
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Staff acknowledge each child’s feelings, for example, by saying “I can see you are upset…” or “You seem really angry…” (remain neutral and do not take sides even if somebody is not fair)
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If the conflict is about an object, staff will take the object in dispute and hold it in view, saying “I will look after this for a minute while we work this out together”
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Staff gather information, asking children what happened to cause the conflict
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Staff restate the information, by saying “So the problem is …”
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Staff ask the children for a solution – “What can we do to solve the problem” – or, when dealing with younger children, offer a solution – “Would you like to hear my idea?” Staff make sure the children are happy with the solution – “Is that a fair solution for everyone?” – and offer the use of sand timer, if appropriate.
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Staff support the children through the planned solution. Staff check that the conflict has been resolved, especially with children who were very upset.
Time In and Time Out
Following extensive research, the early years experts now differentiate between the ‘time in’ and ‘time out’ strategies when dealing with undesired behaviour.
‘Time Out’ – removing a child from the environment where misbehaviour has occurred to a ‘neutral’, stimulating space – should only be used on rare occasions mentioned further. It should not be punitive and must never be imposed in anger. The conventional ‘time out’ strategy does not promote self-discipline in children, as it takes the responsibility of the inappropriate behaviour away from the child. For some children, especially young toddlers, it is so upsetting that they do not remember why they are there and it makes things worse.
Utilising ‘time out’ does not provide children with a logical consequence for their actions so it should therefore only be used when dealing with persistently challenging behaviour (see below) and agreed by the whole team and/or when ‘prescribed’ by an educational psychologist.
In all other instances, should it be necessary to remove the child from the activity due to repeated undesired behaviour he/she will be given
Time In - when a child that is having a difficult moment is kindly invited to sit somewhere, near by a care giver to talk about their feelings and eventually cool down. During the ‘time in’, staff are encouraged to acknowledge and empathise with the child’s feelings. It does not mean that the child must be allowed to continue with a behaviour that is inappropriate; the ‘time in’ gives an opportunity to connect with the child and then address whatever change needs to be made. When ‘time in’ is used:
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Children are likely to feel that their needs are being considered; children are given time to properly process a range of feelings;
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there can be a connection between a practitioner/key person and a child before a correction is presented;
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children do not feel isolated, shamed or scared;
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practitioners do not feel out of control or create power struggle to keep a child in the ‘time out’ zone;
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it gives practitioners and children an opportunity to talk about the real issue at hand and not just the undesired behaviour that occurred as a result.
‘Time in’ should be spent, as much as possible, in a quiet and comforting place to give the child an opportunity to calm down.
Dealing with persistently challenging behaviour
Sometimes unwelcome behaviour becomes persistent and/or crosses the boundaries of what is developmentally acceptable. In such instances, staff will apply techniques for analysing these behaviours, investigating underlying reasons and then creating effective responses. The techniques will be agreed by the whole team and applied consistently by everyone who encounters the targeted behaviours.
One such strategy is the ABC of Behaviour. The ABC model suggests that behaviour can be understood in terms of:
Antecedents:
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What happened immediately before the misbehaviour, the events that led up to it?
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What was the provocation, who did or said, or did not say, what?
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What was the setting for the behaviour? Is it always at the same activity, with the same child or children?
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Does it always happen at certain times of the day or on the same day of the week?
Behaviour:
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What precisely did the child do?
Consequences:
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What happened as a result of the behaviour?
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How was the problem dealt with?
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What did the others do?
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How did they react?
The key person in collaboration with the parents will then draw up a Support Action Plan to promote the positive behaviour and minimise instances of challenging behaviour. Managing antecedents, or triggers, for example, is a proactive way to avoid unwelcome behaviour occurring in the first place. Triggers can be avoided or minimised, sometimes a distraction or redirection away from the trigger may be all that is necessary.
The action plan will be reviewed with parents after three-four weeks and regularly after that. If the behaviour of the child does not improve, Management, with the permission of the parents, will contact outside agencies for support and advice.
Practitioners will be aware that some kinds of behaviour may arise from a child’s underlying additional needs. Therefore, assessment of behaviour and overall development in 4 broad areas of SEN (Communication and Interaction, Cognition and Learning, Social, Emotional and Mental Health Difficulties, Sensory and/or Physical Needs) will be considered.
If a child respectively displays inappropriate behaviour, which is of a serious nature, an incident report will be made for the nursery records. Should the inappropriate behaviour persist, the Director will determine suitable course of action, which may include:
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discussion with the parents and/or professional support, e.g. area SENCO
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requesting the removal of the child from the Nursery
Non-admission may be the only option available if the child’s behaviour is such that he/she is harming others and the programme is no longer able to meet the child’s needs. An incident report will be made and discussed with the senior management.
Biting
Evidence suggests that up to a quarter of all children will bite others at some stage. Although biting is a developmentally acceptable behaviour for young children, Richborough Nursery understands that this is a difficult situation for parents whether it is their child that has been bitten or the one who is biting others.
Why do some children bite?
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Teething – swelling gums can be painful and cause discomfort; this can be relieved by biting or chewing on something
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Exploration – babies and young children explore the world around them using their senses, young children do not always know the difference between gnawing on a toy and biting someone
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Attention – when children are in situations where they feel they are not receiving enough attention biting is a quick way of becoming the centre of attention
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Frustration – children can be frustrated by a number of things, such as; wanting to be independent and do things for themselves and not having the vocabulary to express themselves clearly. This can lead to biting as a way of dealing with this frustration
Biting Incident Procedure
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Practitioners will intervene immediately. Practitioners will comfort the child who has been bitten and remove the child who is the biter from the situation for a brief period. Practitioners will explain to him/her in a calm but firm voice that biting is unacceptable at a level the child will understand.
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Practitioners will administer first aid treatment (washing the bite and applying an ice pack) and continue to monitor the bitten area for signs of infection. If the bite has broken the child’s skin, under the Health Protection Agency guidelines, parents will be advised to seek medical attention.
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Practitioners will fill out an incident form and ask parents to sign it at the pick-up time.
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Practitioners will never share the names of other children involved in the incident to protect the privacy of families.
Staff will react in the following way to incidents of repetitive biting:
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Practitioners will work in collaboration with parents to discover why the child might be biting
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Practitioners will use a Monitoring Behaviour Form (ABC chart) to look at what happened just before the incident
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If the form identifies a possible trigger for the biting incident practitioners will then make changes to reduce or remove the cause (e.g. buying duplicates of children’s favourite toys to stop disputes)
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Practitioners will encourage the child to take part in activities, which help release frustration, such as play dough or other physical activities.
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