Students with specific learning disabilities (SLDs) sometimes experience anger, which can negatively affect their academic performance and social relationships if not managed properly. Prevention and intervention programs are beneficial in addressing this issue. Bibliotherapy is an effective method for anger management and is categorized into…

Self-determination can support student mental health, particularly related to internalizing behaviors, because self-determined actions enable self-motivating consequences (i.e., self-efficacy). Self-regulation--a subset of self-determination--is often utilized by interventionists to improve self-determination and student behavior. Self-regulation…

Anxiety, one of the most common underlying causes of challenging student behavior, typically goes undiscovered and unaddressed through school-based behavior supports. Jessica Minahan and Stuart Ablon combine their expertise as a behavior analyst and a psychologist to outline how best to support students whose anxiety leads to challenging behavior.…

Given that behavioral challenges contribute to learner exclusion in schools, there is a demand for behavior support strategies and practices that (a) extend beyond punitive measures, (b) aid the development of school customs and mores, (c) are based on nonviolence, and (d) promote positive self-discipline. This column explores behavior management…

To succeed in classrooms, students must possess emotional-regulation skills, engage in positive social interactions, and trust teachers. Students coming from backgrounds including poverty and trauma may not possess these, as chronic stress has been shown to lead to impulsivity, poor emotional-regulation skills, and lower executive functioning.…

Jackson--a former teacher, now a speaker and author--shares techniques he used as a new high school teacher to handle disruptive behaviors and threatening conduct from students, while remaining respectful and compassionate about the realities kids faced. His suggestions: establish rules early on and stick to them unwaveringly; understand your…

Prenatal exposure to alcohol causes a pattern of brain-based deficits and is associated with behavioral challenges (Wozniak et al., 2019). Understanding the neurocognitive behaviors common among individuals with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) can increase teachers' effectiveness (Tremblay et al., 2017). Environmental changes, such as…

Charts that keep (public) track of whether a student's behavior is in some equivalent of a red (problem), yellow, or green ("well-behaved") zone are ubiquitous in elementary schools. This strategy based on shaming students is due to be retired because (1) it promotes only compliance, not social-emotional learning; (2) charts don't teach…

When students chronically misbehave and act disengaged in school, how do we know what they're really feeling? In this article, Marc A. Brackett and Dena Simmons of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence describe how understanding the science of emotions can help both students and teachers take charge of their emotions to achieve their goals.…

Much has been written on challenging behavior in young children, and teachers know that that teaching new skills, particularly appropriate ways to communicate, is important when reducing challenging behavior. Strategies that focus on what occurs before the behavior happens are known as "antecedent strategies." Strategies that focus on…

Schools can view challenging student behavior in one of two ways: (1) as a failure on the part of the student or teacher that distracts from the work of learning, or (2) as a normal developmental occurrence that provides an opportunity for the student to practice new or emerging skills. The authors of this article, researchers at the Harvard…

Challenging behaviors can happen to children with a variety of abilities in all kinds of settings, and children's early experiences as members of classroom communities serve as the foundation on which lifelong patterns of social behaviors are constructed. Therefore, helping children with challenging behaviors become fully included is essential for…

When teachers strive to help a student with serious behavior challenges, they often feel at a loss and seek guidance from a problem-solving team of counselors, administrators, and other colleagues. But too often such team meetings fail to provide concrete ideas for things the teacher can do. Rather than simply discussing the mounting challenges,…

Children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience behavioural and learning problems at home and at school, as well as a lack of self-control in their lives. We can take advantage of the evolution of new technologies to develop applications with the aim of enhancing and stimulating the learning process of children with ADHD.…

A child and adolescent psychiatrist describes the dyadic nature of family conflict and provides practical strategies for preventing and managing interpersonal aggression. When parents ignore basic needs such as sleep, hunger, hydration, safety, and security, their children are likely to display qualities like hyperactivity, hypervigilance. and…