Every teacher hits a patch where each day seems to bring the same struggles, sometimes with the same kids, sometimes with different ones. At these moments, teachers may feel like everything is about to derail. How they cope with these behavioral problems, especially at the start of the year, can set the tone for success or failure in the months…

Discussed an idea which helped a teacher successfully handle discipline problems. (Author/RK)

Lying is a symptom of a much broader problem. Primary motivations are need for acceptance, fear of punishment, and desire for attention. Children learn about honesty through observation, both directly and indirectly. Admitting mistakes, especially to children, is invaluable and can help break the lying syndrome. (MT)

Presents three basic tenets of what form the foundation of an effective behavior management system to help beginning teachers at any level, particularly middle school. They include: always listening to the student's side of the story; being consistent in discipline; and knowing when to go higher (e.g., sending the student to the office). (SM)

Described methods teachers may take in order to help students improve their mental health. (RK)

Presented is a chart for educators on common medications which may be taken by students for such health problems as diabetes, hypertension, epilepsy, asthma, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, and leukemia. The possible side effects of each drug are explained. (SJL)

Suggests that labels of learning disabilities, attention deficit disorders, and behavioral disorders are inaccurate and devastating. Teachers, parents, and students must learn to recognize, understand, and manage strengths and weaknesses in brain function. Everyone has learning differences, and nobody has a perfect brain. The paper describes the…

Scapegoating in the classroom is a destructive problem that disrupts the social life of the class. Suggestions are offered in the form of a fable to help both the outcast and those who victimize. (DF)

Guidelines in handling student discipline problems. (SP)

This article presents activities to help teachers explore the issue of tattling and help students learn when to tell and when to work it out themselves. Both activities require several 20-minute periods in which teachers explain the issue and involve students in discussions of appropriate behavior and responses. (SM)

Following is an example of a realistic problem and how one teacher successfully moved her students toward resolving themselves. (Author/RK)

Provides help in the day-to-day activities of the classroom. (Editor/RK)

Stresses the need for full psychological services to be available to students with emotional problems. (GB)

Presents strategies for banishing behavior problems in the classroom and creating a positive learning environment. The behaviors include name calling; hitting and pushing; tattling; poking and touching; overactivity; talking back; complaining about no playmates; being unprepared to work; and lying, cheating, and stealing. On-the-spot solutions are…

An interview with a specialist in childhood trauma examines such issues as what childhood trauma is, what signs teachers should be on the alert for, what traumatized children have in common, how long the effects of trauma last, when psychiatric help is necessary, and how teachers can help. (SM)