Spotlight on Young Children: Challenging Behavior

Teacher talking calmly with a young child

Charis L. Wahman, Janice K. Lee

About the Book

Addressing challenging behavior is a daily concern for early childhood educators. It鈥檚 estimated that roughly 10 to 14 percent of children from birth to 5 years old demonstrate serious behavioral concerns, resulting in significant impacts to their learning and social interactions.听听

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Children engage in challenging behavior for many different reasons; preventing and responding to that behavior begins with understanding why it occurs. This book curates and organizes articles from Young Children and Teaching Young Children that听

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Help teachers build trust and connections with children听
Highlight evidence-based positive behavior intervention and support strategies听
Aim to prevent suspension, expulsion, and other punitive discipline听
Support teachers and families in implementing effective teaching strategies for social and emotional skills children can use instead of challenging behavior听
Show how to adapt practices to consider the cultures and contexts of children听

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Each article in this collection is accompanied by questions to prompt deeper thinking on the content. With this resource, fully see and hear children as you honor and support their well-being, as well as your own.听听

Introduction鈥�
Charis L. Wahman and Janice K. Lee
Part One: Preventive Practices听
- Becoming a Social and Emotional Teacher: The Heart of Good Guidance
  Katherine M. Zinsser, Susanne A. Denham, and Timothy W. Curby
- Culturally Responsive Strategies to Support Young Children with Challenging Behavior听
  Charis L. Wahman and Elizabeth A. Steed听
- Culturally Appropriate Positive Guidance with Young Children听
  Zeynep Isik-Ercan听
- Understanding Young Children鈥檚 Play: Seeing Behavior Through the Lens of Attachment Theory
  Shulamit N. Ritblatt and Sascha Longstreth
- Outdoor Recess Matters! Preventing and Reducing Children鈥檚 Challenging Behavior on the Playground
  Hsiu-Wen Yang, Michaelene M. Ostrosky, Paddy Cronin Favazza, Yusuf Akemo臒lu, W. Catherine Cheung, and Katherine Aronson-Ensign
Part Two: Targeted Practices听
- Building Meaningful Relationships: Tips for Children Who Display Challenging Behavior听
  Cecilia Scott-Croff and Sori Palacio
- A Three-Step Approach: Promoting Young Children鈥檚 Self-Regulation and Language During Conflict
  Kyla McRoy, Hope K. Gerde, and Laurie Linscott听听
- Instead of Discipline, Use Guidance
  Dan Gartrell
- Responses to Challenging Behavior: Why Some Common Strategies Don鈥檛 Work and What to Do Instead
  Keri Giordano, Emily Kokkinakis, and Briana Calcagno-Davi
Part Three: Intensive and Individualized Practices听
- Becoming a Better Behavior Detective: Applying a Developmental and Contextual Lens on Behavior to Promote Social and Emotional Development听
  Claire D. Vallotton, Jennifer A. Mortensen, Melissa M. Burnham, Kalli B. Decker, and Marjorie Beeghly
- Functional Assessment and Positive Behavior Support: The Role of Early Learning Program Leaders and Teachers听
  Barbara Kaiser and Judy Sklar Rasminsky
- Reducing Challenging Behavior During Transitions: Strategies for Early Childhood Educators to Share with Parents听
  Anne M. Butler and Michaelene M. Ostrosky听
Index

Book Details

Product Code: 1171听

ISBN: 978-1-952331-30-5听

Publish Date: 2024听

Citation (in Chicago 17th ed. style): Wahman, C.L., & J.K. Lee, eds. 2024. Spotlight on Young Children: Challenging Behavior. Washington, DC: 51吃瓜网.听

Related Resources

Articles听

鈥淰aluing Diversity: Developing a Deeper Understanding of All Young Children's Behavior鈥� - Authors Barbara Kaiser and Judy Sklar Rasminsky explore how culture shapes our expectations for children鈥檚 behavior. (Teaching Young Children, December 2019/January 2020)听

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鈥淏uilding Environments That Encourage Positive Behavior: The Preschool Behavior Support Self-Assessment鈥� - Christine L. Hancock and Deborah R. Carter share a teacher self-assessment tool鈥攖he Preschool Behavior Support Self-Assessment鈥攖hat helps teachers of preschool children examine how their classrooms support children鈥檚 positive behavior. (Young Children, March 2016)听

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鈥淧lanning for Positive Guidance: Powerful Interactions Make a Difference鈥� - Discover how the Powerful Interactions framework can be used to plan for positive guidance in this article听by Danielle Degal Sanchez, Deborah Steece-Doran, and Judy Jablon. (Teaching Young Children, December 2012/January 2013)听

Audience: Student (higher education), Teacher, Trainer

Age: Early Primary, Infant/Toddler, Kindergarten, Preschool

Topics: Child Development, Social and Emotional Development, Guidance and Challenging Behaviors, Relationships

Charis L. Wahman

Charis L. Wahman, PhD, BCBA-D, is assistant professor of special education at Michigan State University. She also serves as a clinician in early care settings to support young children with social and emotional needs. Charis has conducted research, published articles, and presented on the social and emotional development of young children and families鈥� experiences with suspension and expulsion at national conferences.

Janice K. Lee

Janice K. Lee, PhD, BCBA, is state coordinator for the Nevada Pyramid Model Partnership through the University of Nevada, Reno. In addition to conducting research and publishing articles on the pyramid model, she also provides training, coaching, consultation, and technical assistance on social and emotional skill development to teachers, practitioners, and families to prevent and address challenging behavior.

Reviews

Spotlight on Young Children: Challenging Behavior provides perspective from numerous voices in the field, sorted into tiered practices from the pyramid model鈥攑reventive, targeted, and intensive and individualized. Throughout the collection, the guiding premise of cultivating environments that are relationally safe and culturally responsive is effectively conveyed. By integrating reflective questions and a message of self-care as foundational practices, this book is likely to be useful to both new and experienced early education professionals.

鈥�Anita Osborn, Licensed Educational Psychologist and Infant-Family Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist

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Everyone working with children and teachers is very aware of the dysregulation that children are exhibiting now more than ever, with behavior crying out for support and guidance. This latest excellent volume of 51吃瓜网鈥檚 Spotlight on Young Children series is full of extremely applicable research and practical strategies that can support all of the areas educators are responsible for: tools to help us teachers stay regulated ourselves; tools to teach children about resilience and self-regulation; and tools to build compassionate classroom communities.

鈥�Joanie Calem, Inclusion Advocate and Workshop Presenter, First Do No Harm

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This resource has some very good advice for teachers and caregivers of young children, especially regarding cultural understanding and responsiveness. There are excellent suggestions for gaining an understanding of family practices and values as well as the cultures of children鈥檚 families. In addition, there are valuable tools for analyzing children鈥檚 challenging behavior with ways to reflect on how to respond.

鈥�Nora Krieger, Associate Professor Emerita, Bloomfield College of Montclair State University

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Spotlight on Young Children: Challenging Behavior offers a nuanced look at an increasingly important topic in early childhood. Each chapter provides professionals with new lenses and tools to help children learn and grow with patience and grace, even in the most difficult moments.

鈥�Adam Holland, Technical Assistance Specialist, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute