ECD4 10

B E H A V I O R A L M E T H O D S

& S T R A T E G I E S

C A S E S T U D I E S

Throughout the first four weeks of this course, you will

follow five children with different behavioral needs.

Each week you will learn more another piece of each child’s

story that will help you to apply the information you are

learning in class about supporting children with challenging

behavior.

For your final assignment you will choose one child from the

book to create a behavioral intervention plan for. Tobegin,

turn the page where you will meet the five children.

Next page

C A S E S T U D I E S : M A I N M E N U

J A M E S

AGE 4

Autism

B E C K Y

AG E 6

Separation Anxiety

B R I A N N A

AGE 8

ADHD

L O G A N

AGE 5

Traumatic Home Environment

L A Y L A

AGE 3

Aggression

Next page: James: Week 1

W E E K 1

JAMES

James is a four-year-old who lives in San Diego,

California with his mother, father, and 7-year

old-sister. James’ mother started noticing at

neighborhood play groups that James was

not as social as some of the other kids. James’

mother took James to their pediatrician. She

told the pediatrician about what she had noticed

and explained how James has poor language

development, difficulty making eye contact, is

obsessed with trucks and struggles anytime

there is a change to their normal daily routine.

Based on what she described, the pediatrician

referred James to a specialist to evaluate

whether or not he may have Autism. James’

mother mentioned that her nephew had been

diagnosed with Autism two years ago.

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Next page: James: Week 2

W E E K 2

JAMES

James anxiously comes to school each day.

During the day, James’ preschool teacher, Ms.

Jen, often sees him sitting with his hands over his

ears. When she asks him to take his hands down,

he tells her that it is too loud. During free-play

time in centers or at recess, James often chooses

to play alone and does not engage with his peers,

even if they approach him. Instead, James collects

all the toy trucks he can find and goes to a corner

or separate area of the classroom and lines them

up in rows and oftentimes will spin the wheels

continuously. Ms. Jen makes sure to follow a

predictable routine when she can, but notices

that when the schedule is off, James will break

down.

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Next page: James: Week 3

W E E K 3

JAMES

Ms. Jen, James’ teacher, has a structured

classroom. She has procedures and expectations

that she has put in place to help the students

make sure they feel safe and know what to expect.

On a typical day, the children move through

centers in rotations. One day, James was in the

game center where he was supposed to play

memory with his peers. Throughout the entire

game, James argued with his peer that it was

his turn when it was not. Towards the end of the

game he got frustrated, screamed, and messed up

all of the cards.

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Next page: James Week 4

W E E K 4

JAMES

• James loves spending time with his

family. They regularly sit down to dinner

and engage in conversations about what

happened that day.

• James’ parents expect James and his

sister to help pick up their toys each night.

Many times when James’ parents tell him it

is time to pick up, he will refuse or ignore

what they say. Before bed most nights,

James’ sister likes to come into his room to

read him a story. Some nights James’ listens,

but if he is overtired from the day’s

activities, he becomes agitated and lashes

out at his sister. His sister tries to her best

to understand but often ends up feeling sad

because of how her brother treats her.

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Next page: Becky: Week 1

W E E K 1

BECKY

• Becky is a six-year-old first grade girl from

Tampa, Florida who lives with her mother

and father.

• About six months ago, Becky got very sick

with the flu and spent a week in the

hospital. Once she was healthy enough to

return to school, she started to complain

every day that she had a headache and

stomach ache when it was time to get in the

car for school. When they get to school, she

throws a tantrum and clings to her mother’s

legs and cries about going to school. Her

mother, who suffers from anxiety, is

worried that Becky is suffering from

separation anxiety.

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Next page: Becky: Week 2

W E E K 2

BECKY

On Monday morning, Mrs. Weaver waits at the

door for Becky and her mother to arrive. Mrs.

Weaver can see Becky’s mom walking towards

the class while pulling Becky behind her. When

they get to the door, Becky hides behind her

mother and screams that she has a headache

and stomach ache. Becky’s mother reassures

her that she is safe at school with Mrs. Weaver.

Becky’s mother takes Becky’s hands and places

them in Mrs. Weaver’s hands. Mrs. Weaver then

tells Becky’s mother they will see her at pick up

and gently guides a screaming Becky into the

classroom.

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Next page: Becky Week 3

W E E K 3

BECKY

Mrs. Weaver, Becky’s teacher, starts her day with

a predictable routine of meeting children at the

door each day. When she greets them, she gives

them a choice of a hug, high five, or a handshake

to make a connection as they enter. Becky clearly

struggles with this morning routine since she

comes to school crying and screaming each

morning. One morning at the door, one of Becky’s

classmates, Jacob asked Becky to come inside and

play with him. Becky hid between her mother’s

legs and cried even louder.

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Next page: Becky: Week 4

W E E K 4

BECKY

Becky loves spending time at home with her

parents. Since she is an only child, she decides

most of the activities that the family does

together. When at home, Becky is okay if one

of her parents has to leave to go and run an

errand, but she would prefer they are always

both around. When she has a babysitter, she

throws the same tantrums that she does at

school drop-off each morning. Becky also wakes

up several nights a week with nightmares that

her parents have left her at home alone. On the

mornings after these dreams, Becky has an even

more difficult time at school drop-off.

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Next page: Brianna: Week 1

W E E K 1

BRIANNA

Brianna is an eight-year-old girl who lives

in Austin, Texas with her mother, father,

five-year-old sister and three-year-old sister.

Brianna is in third grade at the local elementary

school. Throughout first and second grade,

Brianna’s teachers would often share with

her parents that she was impulsive and easily

distracted. Her teacher also shared that Brianna

was fidgety and often rushed through her work.

During one of the meetings, Brianna’s dad, Jim,

shared that he was diagnosed with Attention

Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) when he

was in fourth grade.

Brianna’s teacher, while not able to diagnose

ADHD, has suspected that maybe this is

impacting her behavior.

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Next page: Brianna: Week 2

W E E K 2

BRIANNA

Brianna is excited to go to school each day. After

the morning routine, the children go to literacy

stations. While at stations, Brianna’s teacher has

to continuously remind her of where she needs

to be and what she needs to be doing. Instead,

Brianna spends time bouncing from station to

station to see what her classmates are doing.

When she does finally get focused and work, she

is constantly playing with her hair or her pencil,

which impedes her ability to complete work. At

the end of literacy station time, her teacher, Mr.

Peterson, asks Brianna to bring him her work. He

notices that she has only completed two of the

four literacy station tasks she was assigned.

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Next page: Brianna: Week 3

W E E K 3

BRIANNA

Mr. Peterson, Brianna’s teacher, has set up his

classroom to allow his students to take ownership

over their learning. One part of this is having the

students rotate through literacy stations. This

is a challenge for Brianna. Not only does she

struggle to complete her work, but her behaviors

distract her peers. For example, one day during

literacy stations, Brianna was bouncing around

from station to station in the classroom. She also

was tapping on her table while in her work group.

One of her classmates, Ethan asked her to stop.

When he did, Brianna responded by yelling at him

to “shut up”.

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Next page: Brianna: Week 4

W E E K 4

BRIANNA

• Brianna’s family doesn’t spend a lot of

time together at home. Both of her parents

work and they are busy with a lot of after

school activities such as gymnastics and

soccer. At home, Brianna’s parents notice a

lot of differences between her behavior

and that of her siblings.

• They notice that it takes her longer to do

things like brush her teeth or get ready for

bed, even though she is older than both of

her siblings.

• They also notice that they must repeat

directions and that when she has to complete

homework she is easily distracted and usually

does not complete things.

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Next page: Logan: Week 1

W E E K 1

LOGAN

Logan is a five-year-old Kindergartener

who lives with his father. His mother is in

jail for grand theft and Logan rarely gets to

see her. Ever since his mother went to jail,

Logan has become quiet and has had

trouble making new friends since starting

Kindergarten. Logan’s dad works full-time

so Logan goes to the after-school program

each day. Logan’s teacher and the after-

school providers have expressed concerns

to his dad about his withdrawn behavior.

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Next page: Logan: Week 2

W E E K 2

LOGAN

Logan has been in Kindergarten for two months.

His teacher, Mrs. Rose, has been documenting his

behavior for the last few weeks. She has noted

that Logan is reserved and does not seek out

his peers to play. When she asked him the other

day who his friends were at lunch he said he

didn’t have any and that he misses his mom. The

after-school program director also let Mrs. Rose

know that Logan had hit two of the kids at the

after-school program.

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Next page: Logan: Week 3

W E E K 3

LOGAN

Mrs. Rose’s classroom is bright and colorful.

The children engage in a lot of partner and small

group work throughout the day. Logan follows

Mrs. Rose’s directions when she assigns him to

work with a partner or in a small group, however

he usually does not engage in conversations with

his peers during this time. One day, when working

with Mrs. Rose in a small group, another student

was telling a story about how they had gone to

the park with their mom the night before. Logan

said to the boy, “You’re dumb,” and then put his

head on the table and started to cry.

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Next page: Logan: Week 4

W E E K 4

LOGAN

Logan’s dad is doing his best to hold it together

since Logan’s mother went to jail. Most days

he just feels that he is barely keeping his head

above water. After picking Logan up from the

after-school program, his dad usually grabs dinner

from a drive through. When they get home, they

eat while watching TV and then Logan takes a

quick bath before going to bed. There is not much

interaction between Logan and his dad. Just like

at school, Logan is withdrawn at home, but his

father is so busy that he doesn’t seem to notice.

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Next page: Layla: Week 1

W E E K 1

LAYLA

Layla is a three-year-old who attends preschool

at the local Head Start program. She lives with

her parents and her maternal grandmother.

Layla’s mother smoked cigarettes and

consumed alcohol throughout her pregnancy.

Her parents are young and don’t pay much

attention to Layla. She spends a lot of time in

her grandmother’s supervision and care. Layla

spends a lot of time at home sitting on the

couch watching her parents play violent video

games.

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Next page: Layla: Week 2

W E E K 2

LAYLA

Layla attends preschool three days a week at the

local Head Start with her teacher, Mrs. Babcock.

Her parents drop her off and avoid talking to and

interacting with the teacher. When Mrs. Babcock

asks her about what is happening in the pictures

she draws in the art center, she usually says that

the kids in the picture are fighting. Often times

Mrs. Babcock also notices that Layla is pretending

to shoot other children on the playground and

she yells and screams at them when they do

something she doesn’t like. She has even pushed

several students down on the playground.

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Next page: Layla: Week 3

W E E K 3

LAYLA

Mrs. Babcock’s Head Start classroom is full

of learning each and every day with multiple

opportunities to engage in outdoor play. One day

while at recess, Layla and two of her friends were

playing on the swings. Mrs. Babcock asked Layla

to get off a swing so that one of the other children

could have a turn. Layla got off, but as she walked

away from the swing, she pushed the little boy

that was waiting for his turn to the ground.

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Next page: Layla: Week 4

W E E K 4

LAYLA

At home, Layla is in charge. Her parents are busy

with their own social calendars and don’t make

time for her very often. When they do spend time

with her, it is usually playing video games that are

too mature for her age. Her parents often fight

with each other and many nights Layla lays in her

bed and falls asleep to her parents yelling and

screaming. Her grandmother tries to play with

her, but she is busy working and trying to support

her daughter and granddaughter.

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Building Resilience in Young Children Booklet for parents of children from birth to six years

What is this booklet about? Building Resilience in Young Children is a resource to help you boost your child’s ability to bounce back from life’s challenges and thrive. It is filled with:

• up-to-date information

• helpful tips

• parent stories

• links to other resources

The ideas and resources are based on research and have been tested by parents.

The stories were provided by parents of young children. These parents hope that their experiences will help you and your family get through life’s ups and downs.

Who is this booklet for? This booklet is for parents of children from birth to six years. Many of the ideas will also help families with older children. Some of the tips in this booklet apply to all children from birth through six years. Other tips have been given an age range that refers to general stages of child development. Please note that the age range is only a guideline. Every child develops at his or her own rate.

While we refer to “parents” in this booklet, it will help anyone who cares for children – like grandparents, relatives, foster parents and other adults.

Table of Contents 1. Introduction to Resilience …………………………………………….. 1

2. What Do We Need to Know to Build Resilience? ………………… 3

3. Building Caring Relationships ………………………………………… 4

4. Being a Positive Role Model ………………………………………….. 6

5. Gathering Community Resources …………………………………… 8

6. Developing Self-Control (and building self-regulation) ………… 9

7. Developing Thinking Skills …………………………………………. 11

8. Building Confidence ………………………………………………….. 14

9. Developing a Positive Outlook ……………………………………… 16

10. Encouraging Responsibility and Participation ………………… 18

11. Summary ………………………………………………………………. 19

12. Resources for Parents ………………………………………………. 20

Building Resilience in Young Children

Are you looking for ways to help your child become more confident? Handle everyday frustrations better? Bounce back from life’s challenges? This booklet offers tips and resources to build your child’s resilience.

What is resilience? Life can be challenging and may include many stressful situations. Parents and children can feel overwhelmed by different things at different times like:

1. Introduction to Resilience

Best Start Resource Centre 1

Resilience is the ability to steer through serious life challenges and find ways to bounce back and to thrive.

We are born with the capacity for resilience. But resilience is not something we have or don’t have. We work on it throughout our lives. And we need to start as early as possible. Parents are the most important people to help build their children’s resilience.

Children learn a lot by watching their parents. When parents cope well with everyday stress, they are showing their children how to do the same.

Why is it important to develop resilience? Resilience makes a big difference in people’s lives. People who respond to hardships with resilience are:

• healthier and live longer

• happier in their relationships

• more successful in school and work

• less likely to get depressed

What builds resilience? Many of the things that support healthy development in young children also help build their resilience. These things include:

• a secure bond with a caring adult

• relationships with positive role models

• opportunities to learn skills

• opportunities to participate in meaningful activities

In the next section, you will learn how you can help your child develop strengths and gather supports that build resilience.

“One of the keystones for me about resilience is that it is very hopeful – that building it

is an ongoing process and you’re never too old to learn new tricks. This is a very hopeful

message for any parent.” – PARENT

2 Building Resilience in Young Children

2. What Do We Need to Know to Build Resilience? Why are both inner strengths and outside supports important? We need both outside supports and inner strengths to build our resilience.

Outside supports include:

• caring relationships

• positive role models in families and communities

• community resources such as community centres, parent-child drop-in centers, faith groups, or support programs for children with special needs

Inner strengths include:

• self-control

• thinking skills

• confidence

• positive outlook

• responsibility and participation

Outside supports and inner strengths work together to develop our resilience.

Refer to page 19 to learn more about outside supports and inner strengths.

Best Start Resource Centre 3

3. Building Caring Relationships Why are caring relationships important?

“I have two older children in hockey and so we’re quite busy with that. I am also busy with

school because I am taking a course and I am working. So, I am really trying to balance every-

thing. Last week I was busy doing some homework before we went to hockey; and I think my

youngest child was feeling left out. She said, ‘I want to play a game with you. We never play

games together anymore.’ So, I spent some time playing a game with her. It wasn’t a long time,

maybe 20 minutes or so. And I could see she felt better. It made her feel that I was listening to

her, too. A lot of times kids know when you’re not really listening. So being able to really listen

and spend time with them makes a big difference with your relationship.” – PARENT

Building a close, loving relationship with your children is the most important thing you can do to support their resilience. Why? Children do best when they feel loved, understood and accepted, and are protected from harm. Feeling wanted and loved helps us get through the hard times in life.

Children learn to feel safe and secure through a close attachment with at least one caring person. They also learn that their needs will be met. All of this gives them the confidence to explore their world.

Caring relationships provide accepting places where children can learn to regulate their:

• bodies

• feelings

• attention

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