Discipline children at a nursery?

Question

i am going for a job at a nursery, and one of the interview question i have been told is how i would discipline a child if they were naughty but i really do struggle on this subject what would i do?

please help if you can

Answer 1

well one thing the word naughty isnt a good word to use it is labelling the child.remember the age of the child and their level of understanding. try to ignore bad behaviour if it isnt dangerous (easier said than done i know!) have clear set boundaries and make sure all staff work to them consistently. always praise good behaviour...in fact go over the top if a child shows good behaviour we all like praise! if the unacceptable behaviour continues on a regular basis speak to the parents /carers and see if they can shed some light on the problem. also come up with a strategy that the parents can continue to use at home so reinforcing what the child has learned while at nursery.

Answer 2

Simple, its called redirection.  IF a preschooler is misbehaving at preschool , they are bored. No matter what they do you can not actually discipline them because you are being paid to be their teacher/ caregiver.  If they do something 'naughty' redirect them to something fun to do, a different toy, a game, etc...    No time outs or anything. I worked at a childcare center for 3 yrs. and this is the answer the director and the parents want to hear.

Answer 3

i think u should talk to the parents or u also can punish them by asking them to clear the dustbin, erase the whiteboard, keep the toys etc.

BUT DUN EVER USE SPANKING!!!!!!!!11

Answer 4

well i have to deal with my little one all the time and if he/she would need to be disciplined you could tell the child they have to take a nap you put the child in time out or talk to the little one and see what they want you will then compromise with the child and maybe your nursery job will be a big success.

Answer 5

Children shouldn't be told they are naughty. They should be told that what they are doing is not acceptable in your classroom. Most of the time bad behavior is a problem with the environment, not the child.

Basically though, it depends on the age of the child. Younger children can be redirected into an activity or behavior that you want them to do. "You can't hit Bobby, but you can kick this ball or color at the table." Older children can learn there is consequences to their behavior.(i.e. If you hit you will have to go sit at the table with a puzzle, by yourself.)

Establish simple ground rules right away so the children know what you expect (be nice to each other and to the toys, always be safe). It doesnt need to be as complicated as the other post. That would drive me crazy.

Answer 6

Hello!

I had this same type of question on my job app years ago. I basically stated (and in which I still stand by it even after 12 years of teaching) that I would redirect children who were having a hard time listening and give the choice to either move to another area or come and talk to me. I think that giving the child the power to make that choice (while we are guiding them helps build character and independence).  Anyhow, I think that children learn best from experience and modeling. They also depend upon us to make the choices for them and they look upon us to make them feel safe. Also, I do not also think that children at 3 and 4 know why they are doing "naughty" things...and need us to help them identify it and guide them to making the right choice. I hope this helps.

Answer 7

First, the word "naughty" has to go straight out!  There are never naughty children, only children who have not been taught appropriate ways to deal with their emotions, and make good choices.  

"Discipline" means "to teach", so to discipline a child means to teach them the actions they should be doing instead of what they shouldn't.  It means you use phrases like, "Feet on the floor" instead of "stop climbing on that".  Tell the child what you expect of them, instead of what you don't like.  Often parents say things like, "stop doing that!"  "That", what??  And what are they supposed to do instead?  Children are very concrete minded, and it is much easier to see results if you tell them what you want them TO do.  "Please sit on your bottom", as opposed to "stop jumping around".  The way you give instructions can head off a lot of discipline problems.  

Give simple directives: depending on the age and developmental level of the children in your care, you need to moderate the number of words used in a sentence and the difficulty of the words to match the level of the child.  Short, simple directions are the best, "Go put the plate in the trash", with only one to two parts to the statement.  Something like, "I want you to put your plate in the trash, go get a book, sit on the carpet and read" will be way too difficult for some children.  So, remember to break down your instructions to get the most clarity out of them.

Another way to head off problems is to not give choices that are not really a choice.  Such as, "We're going to go potty now, okay?"  The word "okay" as part of a question implies that there is a choice, so make sure that if there is no choice about going to the potty, don't ask permission from the child.  Instead, say, "It is time to go potty."  This can also happen if you give a choice between two things... make sure they really are a choice you can live with.  "You can choose to get in your clothes, or you will have to walk around in your pajamas all day."  Are you really willing to let them walk around in their pjs?  If so, this is okay as a choice.  Otherwise, don't offer it.

Teach children anger management skills.  Teach children how to calm themselves down when they feel angry, embarrassed, etc.  Instruct them on how to recognize their own feelings as well as those of their friends.  Give them tools for helping themselves to calm down, such as breathing techniques, visualization techniques, and self-talk.  Often, teachers forget that children don't automatically have these skills, and overlook teaching them as part of the daily curriculum.  Children need specific instruction in gaining social skills- it doesn't come naturally.

Catch them being good: praise children when you see them doing something they are supposed to be doing.  Try to say more good things that focusing on the negative things.  If you have one child who is not sitting at circle time, it is far more effective to say to another child who is sitting appropriately, "I like how you are sitting on your bottom", than to give attention to the child who is not doing as they are supposed to.  Most often, they want the teacher's attention, so they will act in the way that gets it... if that means you are lavishing all your praise and attention on the ones who are behaving- you will get better behavior from the one who is attempting to gain your attention.

Finally, in dealing with a child who is not complying with directives... They have to know the rules of the classroom.  Only a few simple rules are needed, and they have to be gone over every day in class (such as at circle time).  Or you could have one all-encompassing rule, such as, "Treat friends and our classroom with care", and talk about how this means that we don't want to do things to hurt our friends or our toys, furniture, etc.  If you are having an extreme problem with a child (say, one who cusses, throws things, tantrums), you need to find out WHY.  What is the function of the behavior?  Why are they doing it?  What are they getting out of it? (attention, escaping an activity, sensory need)  What is the consequence, and is it keeping the behavior going, or is it causing it to stop?  What happens before the behavior?  All these questions will help you get to the bottom of why a behavior occurs.  ALL behavior is communication- and it is our job as teachers to figure out what the child is communicating.  Talk with your team, and discuss possible reasons for the behavior, and then figure out how you are going to teach a replacement behavior that serves the same function.  You can find tons of information, worksheets, and help for children with behavior difficulties on:

http://www.vanderbilt.edu/csefel/

Answer 8

At the daycare where I work we occasionally use time-outs--one minute for each year of their age--a three year old will sit for three minutes and etc.  Then we talk with them about why they were in time-out.  Keep your sentences short.  One to three at the most.  Basic and to the point.  Because they sometimes loose focus after that--the children that is.

Answer 9

I had the same question and I got the job. I said "Well I always keep a chair in the corner and the chair has a frowny face taped to it. When a child acts up I give them a small card that has the same picture on it. When they get three they have to go put there three cards in the 'ticket box' by the chair and they have to sit there one minute for every year old that they are. Then when their time is up then they are aloud to start completely over. The same goes for good behavior except the chair has a smiley face and when they get  three smiley cards they can put them in the 'ticket box' and sit in the good chair for 3-5 minutes and be a teacher helper." A variation on the good smiley face cards is to give them choices, like they can save up as many good cards as the want and then they get to choose when they use them, then you can allow them to sit in the good chair for a minute per smiley card.

              GOOD LUCK.

Answer 10

It is very important that you establish your rules and system of classroom management from the very first day of school.  Starting from the first day of school, teach your rules as a unit that will last approximately two weeks.

Gather the children together in a comfortable place and have them brainstorm what would make the worst classroom ever.  Let them tell you what kinds of things the students would do and what would take place in this terrible classroom.  Then, when they are done, ask them if they would like to spend every day in that class.  (Of course they will tell you no!  I have yet to teach a class that said they wanted to be in such a horrible place.)  Let the students brainstorm what would make a great classroom.  They should help you come up with a list of rules that would make this class possible.  Make a list of the rules that your students come up with and post them in a place where they can be seen.  When you are finished, read the book Rude Giants by Audrey Wood.  

This is a great book about some very rude individuals and how they learn manners.  Once you establish your rules, you must be very consistent in enforcing them.  If you would like to see my classroom rules, click here.

Coming up with the rules of your classroom is very important.  You should also have a management system posted in your room where it can be viewed by the students.  I like to display this as a bulletin board that is magnetically attached to my white board.

The management chart is a system that tells your students the consequences of breaking your classroom rules.  I make a bee with each child's name on it before school begins.  I also make a small sign that says, "Bee Good".  There are also small signs that are labeled Warning, 5 Minutes Down, 10 Minutes Down, Note/Phone Call Home and Principal's Office.  I like to post the whole shebang as follows:  at the top I put the Bee Good sign and all of the students' bees go around it.  To the side, I put the signs in this order:  Warning, 5 Minutes Down, 10 Minutes Down, Note/Phone Call Home and then Principal's Office.

When a student breaks a rule the first time, their name is moved to the Warning.  This means that the student has been spoken to and reminded of the rule that was broken.  The second time a rule is broken, the student's name is moved to the 5 Minute Down mark and they lose 5 minutes of their recess to the time out bench.  The third time a rule is broken, the student's name is moved to the 10 Minute Down mark and they lose 10 minutes of their recess to the time out bench.  The fourth time a student's name is moved, I either write a note home or call the child's parent.  The student also loses all of their recess to the time out bench.  The fifth time a student breaks a rule, they go to the Principal's Office.  I also write or call the child's parents and they lose all of their recess time.  One you set up a system of management such as this, it is very important that you follow through on the consequences.  If you do not, they will think they do not have to follow your rules!  If you have trouble remembering who has time out, write the names down on a pad and take it outside with you.  When my class is lined up at the door to go out to recess, I remind them to look at the management chart.  We then look to see where are our names are.  If a name has been moved, I remind the child to go straight to the time out bench.  If the child does not go straight to the bench and I have to go and get him from somewhere on the playground, I give the child an extra minute of time out.

Weekly Reports

A good way to keep the parents informed of their child's behavior in school is to send home a weekly report.  I typed mine in Microsoft Office and inserted a table that listed the days of the week and behaviors that are expected such as walking quietly in the halls and raising hands to speak.  There are also sections to record how a child is doing in math and language arts.  The parents are then informed on their child's behavior and academic progress.  I send the reports home on Monday for the parents to sign and return on Tuesday.  The reports are then kept in student files.

Center Management Wheel

Another thing to consider is how you want to handle your centers.  A good way to keep track of the students and keep them from all trying to go to one center is to make a center wheel.  Cut a large circle from tagboard.  Divide the circle into spokes and label each spoke of the wheel with the center name, a center picture and a number that tells the students how many children can be at a center.  Write the students names on clothes pins.  As students choose centers, they clip their clothes pin onto the appropriate spot on the wheel.  You are then able to keep track of who is where in the room, (and who needs to clean up what!).  I have the students stay in one center only to prevent confusion.

Answer 11

I think people struggle so much with this question in the ECE field because they confuse discipline with punishment. Discipline simply means to teach the child. In an ECE classroom it is important to remind the children to keep thier friends safe, their environments safe, and themselves safe. You would discipline the child according to the rules and regulations set forth by the center. If you are going to be the lead teacher and will be able to make up your own class rules, thinking chairs are popular along with reward systems such as using a stop light for example. Green=good day, Yellow=warning and Red=thinking chair. At the end of each day the child gets to take home a theme related shape in the color he or she earned so mom and dad can see what kind of day he or she has had. If you are referring to little ones such as two-year-olds, time out is a good option. Good luck!!

Answer 12

What ever you say. Don't mention Spanking. Don't even say I will NOT spank a child.

Answer 13

I would have that time out thingy. If it happens 2 more times write a note to their parents. Just makes sure you are not soo mean that they will dislike you. Best wishes!

Answer 14

I think it depends. Obviously, you can't spank them or anything, corporal punishment is a big DON'T, but maybe a talking-to, as most children hate to be told they've done something wrong. Start with a verbal warning, then proceed to something like sitting somewhere apart from other kids. They'll be embarrassed and feel liek everyone is judging them.