Attachment Theory Practical Strategies for Supporting Children With Attachment Difficulties Guy Clayton Trainee Educational Psychologist Suffolk Community Educational Psychology Service

Attachment theory has had significant implications:

Session Aims This session is not suggesting that staff need to become therapists or social workers. Instead it is to help school staff develop further insight as to why certain pupils behave as they do. With a better understanding we may be in a better position to adapt our own responses in our relationships with these pupils

Session Content 1.A brief outline of Attachment Theory 2.General Interventions which can be applied in the classroom 3.Proposal for Key Adult Scheme

Molly Clayton

Secure Base Containment Attunement Internal Working Model

What happens when ‘Good Enough’ parenting is available In School: Children who had experienced ‘good enough’ parenting typically: – Have higher self esteem – Are less dependent – Show more positive affect towards teachers – More cooperative – Respond well to challenges (Sroufe, 1983)

Threats to Attachment Pre-birth stress, for example, mother self-harms or experiences domestic violence Alcohol and/or drug use during pregnancy Parental illness before or after birth, for example ante- or post-natal depression Parental mental health, e.g. depression, bipolar, personality disorder Premature baby Medical complications during growth in the womb and at birth Bereavements in family Baby having a disability Neglect Emotional abuse Sexual abuse Physical abuse Witnessing domestic violence Home instability Abandonment Multiple home or school placements in early years Parent or caregiver have attachment-based problems from their own childhood Teenage parenting Long hospitalization for either baby or parent which results in prolonged separation Poverty or extreme wealth Lack of stimulating environment Chaotic, stressful family environment

What Happens When Attachment is Threatened? Video – ‘Still Face’ Experiment

Questions... What would happen if the mother’s response to her child was always like this? – What type of behaviours would you see at school? What if mum was sometimes like this, but at other times affectionate and responsive? – What type of behaviours would you see at school?

Attachment framework for understanding behaviour styles 1.Secure 2.Insecure and Avoidant attachment 3.Insecure Ambivalent Attachment 4.Insecure Disorganised Attachment

Attachment Styles

Pupil TeacherTask Resilient Confident Self Esteem Independent Achieving The Learning Triangle – Securely Attached

pupil TeacherTask Indifferent Underachieving Sensitive to Teacher proximity Denial of the need for teacher support Hostility towards the teacher is directed towards the task Desire to be autonomous Pupils who cant ask for help Insecure – Avoidant

General Interventions – Avoidant Attachment The teacher is imbued with negative expectations – the child expects to be let down, or hurt. Thus... The relationship between the pupil and the teacher is thus made safe by the presence of the task Therefore a well delivered lesson plan, made clear at the start and clear, structured tasks which can be completed from little help from the teacher can reduce the threat of ‘not knowing’ something and feeling unsupported. Concrete structured activities, with little call for imagination are safest Writing can be difficult for these individuals. Structured assignments with boxes may be preferred The presence of another child can moderate the intensity of the teachers proximity. Pairs or groups may help the child experience close proximity to the teacher.

 These children have tended to experience carer’s that have not responded with clear and consistent boundaries and have not been consistent with their care. Often the attachment figure’s needs have led the relationship.  The world feels unpredictable to them  To manage this anxiety these children often attempt to control the adults and so become dependent and clingy  Poor school attendance is often a good indication of this style of attachment. Transition into secondary school is a vulnerable moment. Pupils who fear separation - Ambivalent

pupil Teacher Task Highly anxious Underachieving Attention Seeking Poor Concentration/ ignore the task Dependent on teacher support Fears Separation Hostile towards teacher if frustrated Pupils who fear separation – Ambivalent

General Interventions –Ambivalent Attachment The child is preoccupied with their relationship with the adult and in being ‘held in mind’. To begin the process of change the child needs to engage with the task... Small independent steps Modelling of turn taking A timer to indicate when the task is over and the relationship can continue Special objects Explicit comments across the classroom Small group work which facilitates working with others Warnings of changes and class movements

The Most Worrying Pupils – Disorganised Attachment Whereas the Avoidant or Ambivalent infants have developed consistent patters of response, there are others who have not appeared to developed consistent strategies for dealing with stress. In the home there may have been: – High levels of stress and distress – Neglect or actual harm – A parent(s) who frighten the child – Emotional/ physical or sexual abuse – Drug abuse “It’s like being starving, but faced with a ‘poisoned cake’” (Hopkins 90)

The Most Worrying Pupils – Disorganised Attachment As a consequence of their early experiences, the child is on constant alert for immediate danger; hyper-vigilant, but exhausted. The nature of their behaviour appears irrational, as though it cannot possibly be explained These children often view themselves as unworthy of anyone’s care; undeserving and of little value They have an absence of trust in the authority of adults Often are insensitive to others feelings Extremely sensitive to criticism and implied humiliation Place considerable importance on objects, rather than relationships

pupil Teacher Task Controlling Intense Anxiety Underachieving Distrusting of Authority Likely to reject task or any educational challenge for fear of failing or not knowing The Most Worrying Pupils – Disorganised Attachment

General Interventions –Disorganised Attachment These children are highly vulnerable; they will need to experience sufficient containment, both physical and emotional. Care typically involves: – Reliable and predictable routine – A physical container or ‘secure base’ – Regular praise and positive feedback – Safety routines – Concrete objectives such as counting, colouring sorting, building structures, sequencing objects, copying etc.

Key Adult Scheme This presentation has focussed on general classroom interventions for attachment difficulties. For the more extreme cases of attachment difficulty here at Hillside Primary School, I would like to propose intervention at the inter-personal level; in the form of a Key Adult Scheme.

Key Adult Scheme The presence of a significant other in school can meliorate the adverse experiences in primary relationships Through access to an adult who will take a special interest in them, the child can experience their emotional states being contained and regulated by someone else. They will be soothed and freed up to learn. Once a child understands their own needs, views and feelings, they can become sensitive to the needs, views and feelings of others.

Key Person Key Person Role 1.Develop trust 2.Manage the child’s feelings 3.Increase the child’s self esteem 4.Be an advocate for the child Who can do it Owing to complex dynamics of sharing and jealousy, it is not advisable that the teacher is the key adult, instead TA’s, who are personable and interested are well placed to take on the responsibility

Key Person Whilst the role is demanding their are possible benefits – Learn about child development – through practical work, and in monthly support group sessions – Become skilful in getting alongside children with attachment difficulties – Be in demand from schools as valuable assets to the school community – Know that you have made a real difference in child’s life

Skills Developed During Scheme: 1.Key strategies for developing the relationship 2.Being explicit in our communication 3.How to develop a child’s independence 4.Building the child’s self awareness and ability to self-regulate 5.Supporting children to make and maintain friendships 6.Lowering the powerful effects of shame 7.Resolving conflicts 8.Supporting through transitions

Support on offer from Community Educational Psychology Service Monthly meetings with me, with the aim of discussing issues as they arise and covering new learning points Video Interactive Guidance (VIG) with two EP’s from the CEPS

Overall message; Seek to respond to the meaning of behaviour rather than react to difficult feelings Resources