Anger Management.

Anger Management

How many difficult students does it take to stop an entire class from functioning?
JUST ONE

What behaviors are disruptive?
Talk back; rude Intense responses Constantly off task Physically abusive to teacher Provokes peers Violent behavior with peers Highly emotional Defiant attitude One misbehavior after another Verbally abusive to teacher Non-stop talking Don’t care Chronically absent/ tardy

Trust Difficult students “enter school with a deficit of trust in schools and in the adults who are there to teach and guide them.”

Reactive Staff Don’t plan how to deal with difficult students
Personalize students’ responses Give up on students

Proactive Staff Have individualized structured plans for students
Recognize that they have a choice in how they respond to a student Build positive relationships with difficult students

Very Important Message
“I care about you and I’m going to do everything in my power to help you succeed. I’m here for you.”

Why are they disruptive?
They need extra attention They need firmer limits They need extra motivation They need a way out * Identifying needs helps set goals

Function: the purpose that the behavior serves to get something
to avoid, delay, or escape something

Teaching Appropriate Behavior
Develop a Behavior Profile Determine when problems occur Define problem behaviors Plan what you want the student to do

Teaching Appropriate Behavior
1. Meet with the student one-to-one when no other students are around 2. In a very matter-a –fact manner, specify the exact behaviors you expect *Remind students of the appropriate behavior before the activity takes place

Support the behavior you want repeated
Change tendency to look for the negative - Set goals for positively recognizing a student’s appropriate behavior - Select and implement positive behavior

Behavior Mantra “It is easier to prevent a behavior from occurring, than to deal with it after it has happened.” This is one of the most basic concepts of behavior management. It is always better to prevent unwanted behaviors by setting up environments and instructional tasks that result in success for the student. Have participants read the quote as a choral response. Remember … an ounce of prevention is worth a ton of medication. OR in school lingo…prevention avoids detention!

Conflict Management

Establish Conflict Resolution Rules
Cool off One person speaks at a time Use “I” messages Restate what is heard Take responsibility Brainstorm solutions Decide on one solution Affirm, forgive, thank

Splash cold water on face
1. “Cool Off” Examples Count to 10 Look at the sky Take a quick walk Breathe deeply Take a step back Splash cold water on face

2. Only one Person Speaks at a Time
Why It’s Important: Allows people to be heard Fosters respect

3. Use “I” Messages Each student states what they did
Each student states how they felt Students should avoid: “you” messages put downs guilt trips sarcasm negative body language

4. Restate What is Heard Each student summarizes what they heard the other one say. Why it’s important: demonstrates respect shows the person they have been heard/understood ensures understanding fosters empathy

5. Take Responsibility Student accepts their contribution to the problem Listen to others’ contribution to the problem Acknowledge own feelings Listen to others’ feelings

Write an “incident report”
6. Brainstorm Solutions Examples: Take turns Share Play something else Agree to play apart Seek compromise Write an “incident report”

7. Decide on One Solution Both agree on a solution
Both agree to abide by the solution Both agree not to “bad mouth” or talk about the solution with their friends

8. Affirm, Forgive, Thank “Sorry” Handshake Kind words “Thank You” Hug

Things for Adults to Remember
Behaviors happen for a reason Acknowledge the feelings/emotions Be a positive role model manage tone, body language, etc. Be part of the solution, not part of the problem

Be a Good Listener Passive listening – listen without talking, listen for facts/emotions Acknowledgement responses – communicate that you are interested and listening (“uh-huh,” “Oh, I see”) Door openers – encourages children to talk (“Please tell me more.”) Active listening – most effective technique

Active Listening Example
Mirror what you are hearing (repeating, restating the original message) Child: You are not fair. Adult: You feel like I am blaming you. Child: Yeah, I didn’t do anything. Adult: You’re angry because you don’t feel like you did anything wrong. Child: Yeah, Billy is being mean to me. Adult: So you believe he started it? Child: Yeah. Adult: Do you want to tell me about it?

Adult Role in Problem Solving
Open ended problem solving (brainstorm solutions) Example: “It looks like we have a problem, what can we do to solve it?”

Adult Role in Problem Solving
2) Limit setting Provide choices for both parties Example: “You can choose to ignore each other and continue to play, or you can choose to continue bugging each other and get a low level referral”

Challenging Behaviors

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors
5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 7. Calm Agitation Acceleration Peak De-escalation Recovery Trigger We will frame the remainder of this session around this graphic that you see on the slide. We will be talking about strategies to use to prevent mild behaviors from getting worse and strategies to address more serious student behaviors if they occur. Geoff Colvin, in 1992, developed this model for the phases of challenging behavior that you see here. Each phase represents a change in a student’s behavior or demeanor. We can use this model to help us recognize when a student is becoming agitated and how we can respond appropriately. We will be talking about what student behaviors typically look like in each phase, and strategies for managing the behaviors in each stage. Often, as the phases progress, the cycle involves an escalating interaction between the teacher or paraeducator and student that is explosive, intense and highly unpleasant. To prevent behaviors from getting worse, you need to be able to recognize what phase a student’s behavior is in and then you can respond accordingly. The idea that we want to foster is that it is important to intervene as early as possible in this chain to prevent the student's behavior from moving into a more serious phase. Many times it is our very own response to a student’s relatively mild level of behavior that provokes the student into a power struggle that escalates the behavior. We can learn to intervene early in the chain with effective and professional responses that acknowledge a student is having a problem, provide respite, and promote a return to the task at hand without disrupting the entire educational setting.

5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 7. Calm Agitation Acceleration Peak De-escalation Recovery Trigger You are here Let’s start by talking about phase one.

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 1. Calm
Definition: Student is in typical, neutral state Student is cooperative and responsive to teacher and task demands In this phase, the student’s behavior appears to be appropriate, cooperative, and responsive to teacher demands. So, in this phase everything in class seems to be running smoothly and according to plan. The student is following directions or engaged appropriately in whatever the activity is at the time.

Tips for preventing challenging behaviors Be aware of the antecedents that affect behavior Environmental Time Physical/Medical Task Instructor Presentation You must know your students. Be aware of the different factors that can affect a student’s behavior. Know what affects your students in both a positive way and a negative way. Some students adjust easily to different types of environmental conditions such as noise levels, flickering lights, or room arrangement. Other students have difficulty with certain conditions or do not adapt well when changing from learning situation to situation. We may be able to adjust and arrange these day-to-day variables. Some or all of these factors may be having an effect on student behavior. When designing the ,classroom arrangement, scheduling and instructional tasks the team should consider the following variables: Environmental variables - furniture, décor, noise level, temperature, lighting Time - time of day, wait time, start/stop time Physical or Medical – hunger, medications, medical side effects, allergies, amount of sleep Task – materials, activity, pace, length of task, activity partners, activity complexity Presentation - complexity of presentation, type of instruction, type of cues Instructor - tone of voice, disposition/attitude toward a student, consistency of expectation Instruction - Another antecedent is instruction itself. If a student has a specific skill deficit such as an academic, social or communication skill , instructional situations requiring use of those skills may trigger unwanted behavior. It is important to provide instruction at the level where the student is able to approach the task and experience success. If tasks are presented that the student does not have the skills to understand or complete, unwanted behaviors will arise. Many students will do anything to avoid the embarrassment of having to read aloud or get out of assignments they cannot do. These include mild class disruptions up to full-blown verbal and/or physical aggression that gets them thrown out of class.

How to respond when behaviors occur Treat students with respect Look for opportunities to praise students Attend to appropriate behaviors of student Just as you would with adults, treat students with respect. Be polite, friendly and helpful in order to build and maintain a good working rapport. This will make you more approachable to students. Students will be more willing to listen to what you have to say, follow directions and also come to you for assistance if they have a problem. It is important to provide adequate attention during this calm phase. We often get into the habit of noticing all the inappropriate things that students do and many times ignore the things kids do correctly. Look for ways to notice the things kids do right. Even the most challenging student can become easier to work with if you look for positive things to say. Notice that the student arrived on time, brought the correct materials, has a new hairstyle. Just remember that your comments should be age-appropriate and sincere. What we give attention to we will get more of in the future. One of the best ways to encourage and maintain appropriate behavior is to attend to students when they are in that calm, neutral state. Let them know what it is specifically that they are doing correctly. If there is an incentive or token system of reinforcement in place in your class or school make sure to look for opportunities to let kids who have challenging behaviors know they did something correctly. Typically, in classrooms adults have a ratio of 15 negative comments to 1 positive comment! To change the climate try changing that around to at least 3-5 positive comments to 1 negative. You will be surprised how the atmosphere will change. Instead of the students waiting for you find fault, they will be excited to hear what you have to say and may be more willing to work for you. A student can get the attention he or she needs either by doing what you want him to do…sit quietly in his seat…(nice sitting, John) or by doing what you don’t want him to do…walk around the room (John, sit down now). Either way, John gets the attention he needs from you. Your job is to find ways to give John the attention he needs by finding and remarking on the positive. The best time for teaching social behavior and specific social skills to students is during this calm phase. Refer participants to Handout #2 for Quick and Encouraging Statements to use with students.

5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 7. Calm Agitation Acceleration Peak De-escalation Recovery Trigger You are here Moving on to phase two.

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 2. Trigger
Definition Any event that provokes an undesired response from the student School-based Non-school based A trigger is any antecedent event that can bring about a behavior, such as, one student bumping into another or a teacher asking a student to take his seat. One or more of the environmental variables we talked about in phase one can serve as a trigger for unwanted behavior. We can talk about two types of antecedent events or triggers: School-based triggers: conflicts between students, changes in routine, task demands, skill deficits, didn’t do homework, etc. may trigger a chain of challenging behaviors Non- school-based: health problems, poor sleep patterns, poor nutrition, drug or alcohol abuse in the family, etc. also have an affect on whether a student may exhibit serious behaviors at school. Think about the morning you have an argument with your spouse or child just as you are leaving for work. Then you get in traffic and are a few minutes late. The first person who talks to you when you get to work may get a scowl and a harrumph. We need to be aware of these types of triggers, especially for our students who may have explosive behaviors. The behavior you may see in this phase might involve ignoring a teacher or paraeducator request, talking out or mild off-task behavior.

Tips for preventing challenging behaviors Remove or reduce the importance of the trigger Provide a reminder or cue for an alternate reaction to the trigger Precision requests Students with behavior problems often have deficits in study skills, social skills, anger management, and responsible decision making. Use instructional procedures to directly teach these skills. This would be a decision of the teacher or team and you would do this under the direction of your partner teacher. How you respond at this stage is really going to determine if a student’s behavior will return to neutral or escalate into a more serious problem. When a student ignores a direction or disobeys a common class rule one way to respond is with a precision request. Instead of nagging or continually repeating the direction you can use a precision request. Precision requests come from the work of Dr. William Jensen, Author of “The Tough Kid Book” and several other titles. This is a technique that teachers and paraeducators can use to plan for calm, mild responses to use with students for whom non-compliant behavior is a problem. We want to give the student every opportunity to perform the desired behavior without getting into an argument or other negative interaction. These are the steps to using precision requests… trainer read through steps on this slide and next slide. Presenter: Refer participants to Handout #3 Precision Requests Read through the steps and then show the video clip. Show the video clip by double-clicking on the picture of the video camera. Now let’s look at a video clip to see what a precision request might look like. Use first video clip from Utah State Office of Education: Least Restrictive Behavioral Interventions (LRBI) Resources, Preliminary Strategies - Tape I

How to respond when behaviors occur Respond to negative student behaviors in a professional manner Don’t take it personally View as a teaching opportunity Respond to unwanted behavior of students in a professional manner. Student behaviors can be frustrating, but you don’t want to respond in any way that will make the problem worse (like getting into a power struggle, threatening the student or getting into a physical struggle, embarrass or humiliate a student). When a student misbehaves, don’t take it personally. The student may respond that way with any person in a position of authority. The student may just be having a bad day, or have a problem at home that has nothing to do with you. Even if a student insults you directly, try not to take it personally. Give yourself time to respond to tense situations – take a deep breath or count slowly to give you time to form a response that is calm and professional – not one you may regret later. You can view negative student behaviors as opportunities to teach new skills. This takes the focus from the unwanted behavior and places it on a more positive productive alternative. For example, if a student doesn’t agree with something or is angry and curses at the teacher or paraeducator, he may not know a more appropriate response. At a later time, when the student is calm, you can discuss other, more appropriate, ways that he can let you know that he is angry or has a problem and actually practice them with the student – such as, raising hand, waiting for the teacher to recognize him and saying, “I don’t agree with that” or “ Mrs. Brown, I don’t understand why we are doing it this way” or “Mrs. Brown, I want to ask you a question about this”. It is helpful to plan responses to possible situations in advance. You can discuss possible responses to specific situations with your partner teacher. You can implement a plan that is already in place. Calmly point out what the student is doing and what he or she should be doing instead. Then implement any preplanned response to the student’s response (for example, reward for the desired behavior, or a mild unpleasant consequence for not following the direction or rule. This could be something as simple as staying back in class for a minute or two before be allowed to go on to recess, lunch or the next class.).

5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 7. Calm Agitation Acceleration Peak De-escalation Recovery Trigger You are here Moving on to phase three.

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 3. Agitation (Anxiety)
Definition Student behavior unfocused or off-task Student showing indicators of anxiety Student no longer in typical, neutral state This phase can last for a considerable amount of time, depending on the situation. Students often display agitation because they are unable to handle the triggers in Phase 2. Agitation is when the student may look angry, upset, depressed, worried, anxious or frustrated. Agitation may involve increased or decreased levels of behavior, such as, darting eyes, busy hands, moving in and out of groups or staring into space, withdrawal from groups, or subdued language. The main goal in this phase is to utilize strategies that calm the student down. Strategies must be implemented before onset of acting out behavior.

Anxiety A state of intense apprehension, uncertainty and fear
Results from anticipating a threatening event Intense anxiety = “fight or flight” We all feel anxiety in dangerous situations. Anxiety can be defined as a state of intense apprehension, uncertainty, and fear resulting from the anticipation of a threatening event or situation. Sometimes, anxiety is so intense that the normal physical and psychological functioning of the individual is disrupted. At its most intense, we experience what is called "fight or flight". This is a physiologic response that prepares the body to "fight" or "flee" from a threat to our survival. This response can help us survive a threatening situation. It's perfectly normal to feel anxiety in an extreme situation. It's also normal to feel anxiety when you are with someone who appears to be out of control of their own emotions and behavior

Anxiety What it looks like. What to do.
A noticeable increase or change in behavior e.g., pacing, finger drumming, wringing of hands, rocking, etc… What to do. Be Supportive Take an empathetic, nonjudgmental approach attempting to alleviate anxiety

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 3. Agitation
Tips for preventing challenging behaviors Let student know you are aware there is a problem Use active listening Help student label the emotion Clarify immediate expectations Reduce situation demands Communicate to the student that you understand he or she is having a problem (“Are you doing OK?” ). Use active listening. Many students lack effective language or social skills for letting adults know they have a problem or complaint even if it is a legitimate issue. They become angry or defensive. The adult can show the student that he or she wants to understand the student’s concern and help solve the problem (instead of simply trying to get the student to comply or provide a punishing consequence) by paraphrasing or restating the student’s problem or concern. Statements like, “Let me understand you correctly” or ”It sounds to me like these are your concerns…” show respect for the student’s problem or point of view and a willingness to help solve the issue. This can help avoid getting into a more negative interaction and help the student gain understanding of the issue. You can assist the student to label his or her emotion. If a student comes into class slamming books and talking to herself the paraeducator might say, “Jane, you seem angry. Can you tell me what is the matter?” Helping a student match a label with how they are feeling can help avoid a confrontation. It can help the student acknowledge openly how he or she is feeling instead of giving off more indirect cues through negative behavior. The paraeducator and student can then discuss it and figure out what may have triggered the emotion. This may help in finding a solution to avoid the problem in the future. When helping a student label an emotion, be tentative – since you cannot be sure what the student is really feeling. For example, “Don, you seem frustrated…” or “Kayla, you appear nervous, is there something wrong?” You can use the precision request at this stage to restate expectations. Refer to Handout #3. Allow student to engage in a preferred activity or take a break for a short time with the understanding that he or she is expected to return shortly to the original task.

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 3. Agitation
How to respond when behaviors occur Provide or withdraw attention Avoid a power struggle Offer choices Use interrupting strategies Depending on the purpose or function of the student’s behavior, you may want to withdraw your attention from the student. This may take the immediate pressure to respond off the student and you. Take a moment to think how best to respond appropriately to behaviors at this stage. Try to remain calm. Avoid becoming angry or raising your voice. Do not get drawn into an argument. If you react to the student’s agitated behavior by becoming agitated and intimidating, you may be drawn into a power struggle that no one can win and lead the student to display higher, more intense levels of behavior. Attend to the student in a calm, positive manner, presenting choices the student has at the moment. “Would you like to stay in your seat or go to the other work area to finish your assignment?” Use interrupting tactics such as directing the student’s attention to a different topic or a preferred activity. Here is a short clip to show how to acknowledge a student is having a problem without getting into a confrontation. Show video clip. Presenter: To show clip, double-click on the picture of the student at his desk.

5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 7. Calm Agitation Acceleration Peak De-escalation Recovery Trigger You are here In this next section, we will discuss acceleration. The definition of acceleration is to increase an object’s speed. Like this definition, our student’s behaviors often “accelerate” rapidly. It can seem as though one minute they’re calm and the next they’re displaying challenging behaviors. In this phase, we will discuss how to recognize when a student’s behavior is accelerating, some tips on how to prevent this acceleration from occurring, and how to respond to these types of behaviors as they occur.

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 4. Acceleration
Definition Student actively resisting, refusing Verbal aggression, threats Violation of behavior rules A student screams “You can’t make me, _________” A student curses at you Behavior is confrontational Unlike phase 3, where students are unfocused and off-task, in phase 4 student behavior is quite focused. Students exhibit engaging behaviors that are likely to engage some other person. The student is engaging in confrontational interaction. The student will exhibit behaviors that irritate others and you as well. They may make rude comments, be provocative, violate established rules or threaten others. Let’s look at an example of this type of behavior. Play clip embedded in the graphic provided. Is this how you may have responded in this situation? Hopefully your answer was no! The next slide will give you some tips on how to prevent the situation that you just saw from occurring. A student who displays angry outbursts can throw a classroom into turmoil. This student can trigger strong feelings in you. Your challenge in working with a student whose emotional temperature often reaches the boiling point is to control your own feelings. By doing this, you will model appropriate student behavior.

Tips for preventing challenging behaviors Posture Eye Contact Facial Expression Distance Voice Quality Privacy Present Options Acknowledge cooperation Posture: Try to make your posture non-threatening. Try to stand at an angle and have your arms at their sides with palms out. This stance is called an open stance and lets the student know you are ready to talk, not attack. Eye Contact: Eye contact with students shows that you are listening. Try not to “stare” down the student. He or she could perceive that as threatening. Facial Expression: What is shown on your face should continue to be non-threatening and try not to display a fearful or angry expression. Distance: Try not to be too close or too distant from the student; about 3 to 4 feet is the average. Standing too close can make the student uncomfortable, while standing too far away can indicate that you are disinterested in what the student is saying. Voice Quality: Your tone should remain calm and even. Keeping calm is imperative. Privacy: Remove the student’s audience to avoid escalation of the behavior. The student does not loose “face” if you remove the audience. Present Options: Give the student a choice of options to consider and present choices. Giving a single direction can corner the student and cause escalation in behavior. Acknowledge Cooperation: Give students positive encouragement when they cooperate. Be careful to avoid a sarcastic tone and be sincere. A few more helpful hints: Our job is to encourage students rather than to control. Be positive in speaking to the students, avoid "putting them down." When possible, organize ahead of time and think before speaking.

How to respond when behaviors occur Avoid escalating prompts Remain calm and respectful Set clear limits Remove potentially dangerous items Obtain needed support to manage situation Use distracting statements to help student redirect focus Sometimes the strategies we just talked about do not work and a student will continue to accelerate with behaviors. In these situations, it is important to use the following strategies to respond. Strategies: Avoid escalating prompts: such as cornering student, power struggles, or grabbing a student. We do not want the behavior to continue from this point. Maintain calmness, respect, detachment: Speak privately/quietly, keep reasonable distance, focus on the problem at hand. Set clear limits: Be sure to set clear expectations and choices for behaviors. This will allow the student to decide where the behavior will go from there. Remove potentially dangerous items: Remove items like chairs, scissors, pencils, etc. so that the student cannot hurt him/herself with objects around them if the behaviors become dangerous. Obtain support needed to manage the situation: Call for assistance from the classroom teacher or other adults if necessary. Use distracting statements: A distracting statement can be used to help the student redirect an accelerating behavior. Statements like “Do you like Pepsi or Coke?” may distract the student enough so that the situation does not become dangerous. Be sure, if you try this strategy, that the student will not react by becoming more angry. Before using any of these techniques, it is important to remember to first know your students and which strategies work best with them. Let’s see what happens in our previous video example when the Paraeducator uses the tips above. Play clip embedded in the graphic provided. Using the tips above, the paraeducator avoided the behavior from accelerating into a more dangerous or difficult situation. The above strategies are important to keep in mind when dealing with these types of accelerating behaviors.

You are here 5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 7. Calm Agitation Acceleration Peak De-escalation Recovery Trigger Now we will discuss phase five.

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 5. Peak
Definition Student aggression to self, others or property Overall student behavior out of control Fighting Property destruction Assault Now we will talk about peak behaviors. The peak is defined as the highest level or greatest degree of the behavior. In this section, we will discuss the most challenging of behaviors. These are the behaviors that may cause damage or physical harm. In many situations the adult can defuse the problem. However, some situations need to be treated as dangerous or crisis situations: for example, when a student’s behavior indicates drug or alcohol use, the possession of a weapon, or when students present serious threats or aggression. In these cases, the teacher or Paraeducator needs to follow emergency procedures set forth by the district or school and get help, if needed. If you don’t already know who to call when you need help, find out as soon as you arrive in school tomorrow. Behaviors in this phase can be categorized as serious disruptions /threats to the safety of others; serious destruction of property; assault, self-abuse; and severe tantrums. We’ll take a look at a video now that shows what types of behaviors we’ll be dealing with in this phase. Play clip by double-clicking the graphic provided. Did the adult in this situation do the “right” thing? Let’s talk now about ways we can attempt to diffuse these situations as well as how to respond to these types of behaviors if the prevention strategies are not effective.

Tips for preventing challenging behaviors Specific Defusing Statements Dignity for yourself Dignity for the student Keep the student in class Teach an alternative to aggression Defusing techniques are actions taken by the adult to calm or soothe a challenging situation. Potentially difficult situations can be successfully solved by giving the student a corrective message. I will give you some examples of defusing statements. See Handout 5.1 and 5.2 for specific defusing statements. These tips for prevention are very helpful to remember when defusing difficult situations. We are less likely to want to extend dignity to students when they behave in a hostile manner. It is very important to remember to preserve the dignity of you and your students in these situations. When your buttons are pushed, you need to locate a response that enables you to stand up for yourself without fighting back. Keep in mind the other prevention strategies that we have discussed today. These strategies can also be effective in preventing the peak behaviors from occurring.

How to respond when behaviors occur Protect yourself, student and others as much as possible Remove student or remove others Pause and Assess Physically step away and send for help Block non-aggressively (if necessary) When students become out of control, it is important to respond to the situation by remaining calm and implementing a crisis plan. Each classroom should have a crisis plan to address these peak behaviors. The most important thing to keep in mind during these situations is SAFTEY FIRST. There is no shame or loss of respect with stepping away from dangerous situations. Never feel obligated or pressured to take care of these situations yourself. When responding to these peak behaviors protect yourself and others as much as possible. Have the other students perform a ‘room clear procedure’ where the location of the other students is predetermined by the crisis plan. Pause and assess the situation, do not respond to the student immediately. If absolutely necessary, block any attempts to harm you physically and ask someone to go get help. Let’s take a look at an example of a Paraeducator who is being challenged by a student. Play clip by double-clicking the graphic provided.

5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 7. Calm Agitation Acceleration Peak De-escalation Recovery Trigger You are here This phase is very “hopeful”! It is characterized by a reduction in intensity. Let’s now focus on what happens after the previous phases of challenging behaviors have occurred.

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 6. De-escalation
Definition Reduction or cessation of student aggression Reduced frequency or intensity of student behaviors Student may appear confused This particular phase marks the beginning of the student's reduction in agitation. Students may not be especially cooperative or responsive to adults in this phase. Confusion, withdrawal, denial, blaming others, and avoidance of discussion might also occur here. This phase may not mark the end of the behavior without intervention--but it is the point at which you aren’t dealing with new developments. Often students act defensively at this stage, and may not be willing to discuss what has just happened. I had a situation once where a student had attempted to hit another student in the classroom with a pencil holder. The student who had acted out required an extended period of de-escalation. He paced, denied that he had even attempted to hit the other student and repeatedly asked to go back to the classroom. These situations are difficult to deal with because the student can easily be triggered into another episode of peak behaviors. It is important not to provoke the student in these situations so that you do not find yourself back in the fray.

Tips for preventing challenging behaviors Be cautious of your responses to student

How to respond when behaviors occur Provide cues to signal positive behaviors Attend to appropriate behaviors Engage student in individual assignment Provide quiet time Responding to a student whose behavior is de-escalating is similar to the response that would be given in phase 5. If the school you work in allows for a time-out or in school-support room where a student has the opportunity to be isolated, accompany the student to that area. This setting allows for isolation and supervision or time to cool down. Be sure to encourage or signal positive behaviors from the student and acknowledge them when they occur, even if the only thing the student has done is leave the area or allowed the other students to leave. As the student’s behavior continues to de-escalate, engage the student in an independent assignment like a page of definitions, math problems for 20 minutes and establish a clear basis for cooperation. Be sure to follow the guidelines that you and your partner teacher have established previously for interacting with the student at this point. It is important that the student receives a clear expectation during this time. Take time to complete any exit paperwork necessary with the student, for example, a behavior form. These forms can be helpful for the debriefing session with the student. Be cautious that the student may have difficulty with discussions and cooperative learning activities. It is important to understand how to work with students in this phase to prevent further aggression during a crisis situation. Let’s take a look at an example of a Paraeducator who is using the examples above. Play clip by double-clicking the graphic provided.

5. 6. 1. 2. 3. 4. 7. Calm Agitation Acceleration Peak De-escalation Recovery Trigger You are here Lastly, we will discuss the recovery phase.

Seven Phases of Challenging Behaviors 7. Recovery
Definition Student returns to “calm” Student eager to complete tasks Student reluctant to interact or talk Behavior returns to a nonagitated, normal state and the student’s attempt for recovery is occurring. The student can be eager for independent work or an alternate activity; he or she is often trying to avoid activities involving other students. The student may also be reluctant to talk. You, as the paraeducator, can have a file of alternate activities ready for the students to work on. My Paraeducator compiled a file for each student that included activities that they liked to do such as word finds or word searches. What a wonderful help those folders were in my classroom. Here is an example of a strategy used in my classroom: In my classroom we had a blue line at the front door and another at the back. These lines marked a new beginning for whatever had occurred prior to coming into my classroom. This symbolized that the student as well as myself had let the behavior go. After crossing the line the previous behaviors will not be brought up by me again. In other words, they got a fresh start from that point forward. The consequences for the misbehavior will still be enforced. However, I assured the student that I held no personal grudge or hostility to whatever behaviors that had occurred prior to them arriving in my classroom.

Tips for prevention This phase is necessary after a challenging behavior has occurred Attempts for prevention of the behavior should occur in the previous phases so that the student does not have to enter the recovery phase Remember that a student needs to recover from a difficult situation. This phase is critical for the student to re-enter into the classroom. You can use the strategies previously outlined to try to keep the behaviors from occurring in the first place.

How to respond when behaviors occur Attend to appropriate student behaviors Help student focus on independent task or activity Consider/analyze events that led to crisis Teach alternative responses at a later time You, as the paraeducator, can assist the student to focus on the activities at hand (prompts and verbal reinforcements, such as praise). Allow the student to reconstruct what happened to cause the problem situation. The debriefing step is crucial and should not be omitted because same triggers that prompted the chain of escalating behavior are likely to reappear. You or your partner teacher may conduct the debriefing session after the student has remained on-task for ½ hour or at an appropriate time. During the debriefing session assist the student in developing problem solving options (when student appropriately handles a certain situation that previously triggered problem behavior, provide strong positive reinforcement). Do not negotiate consequences for the behaviors. Often students are extremely apologetic and believe if he or she is good now, they can bargain their way out of consequences. They often try to talk their way out of “getting in trouble”. By not engaging in that type of conversation, you will not be sending a mixed message to the student.

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