HELP!! I have a problem student!!?

Question

I am a pre-k teacher and well I have a "problem child".

I have a great class of 16 students, with the normal struggles for 4 year olds. But one of my students is an absolute mess. He doesn't follow any directions, and when I (ask/tell) him to stop doing something he yells at me "NO!!" And then continues to do the activity. To make matters worse he hit me today with a stick... not to hard just a little pat... but still. And on the play ground he ran over someone with a tricycle.

Some personal in site into him... his dad is in jail, and his brother is bi-polar. so he has some issues and I try to be understanding, but I really don't know what to do about him, he is very aggressive. I want him to succeed. I need any help I can get.

Oh and his mom is not very supportive.

Answer 1

You could try a behavior chart.  Break it down into the activities you do and if he does what he is supposed to do the first time he is asked then he gets a sticker or stamp.  Then if he gets so many a day he earns something special (a hug, a special spot on the floor, a big sticker, a good note home, etc.)  It does make for a little extra work on  your part but just getting almost instant rewards for being on task can help a lot.  I taught 5th grade and out of my 22 students I had 8 of them on a behavior chart system and it worked pretty well for most of them (there are always the kids that it won't work for though.)

Answer 2

This poor kid needs love and support, not a lot of rules.  You might do better with him if you focus on the positive and give him some good attention.  

Answer 3

Wow, I would talk to the principle/ head administrator and ask them to schedulae a conference with the parents to explain the code of conduct with them. Obviously the child dosen't have a good environment at home, but at the same time he can't be acting that way at school. He's disturbing the other students and you who has to deal with fifteen other students!

Answer 4

Does your school offer any special ed services?  If so, refer this child for a complete evaluation (learning, language, psych).  If not, he should be eligible for testing in the public school, as he is more than 3 years old.  The poor guy needs support, and probably some special services.  

In the meantime, you need to give him some very concrete,very clear tasks to achieve.  For example: sit in the morning meeting for 3 minutes.  Give him some type of reward for that (a check mark, a sticker) and gradually increase the expectations.  Use a quiet area or time out; when he is aggressive, he has to sit in this area for 4 minutes, quietly, in order to return.

I would suggest that you speak to a mental health professional, school counsellor or behaviorist to give you some guidance.

Good luck, this is a really tough situation!