It’s NOT Always The Child!

It’s NOT Always The Child!

When a child is in the wrong environment, it is easy to think that the child is extremely disruptive and has a behavioral issue.  Have you every stopped and wondered if it might be the environment the child is in before you label the child as someone who can’t listen?

As the ratio of teacher to children in the classroom is decreasing, it is a lot harder to have the one-on-one interactions that are needed.  There may be too many children in the same room for some children to process for themselves.  Imagine you have to listen to the teacher’s instructions while the child next to you is yelling for a toy, and on the other side you have a child banging his blocks while screaming at another child to leave him alone.  You can imagine it can get very loud!

For some children it is too much to process, so they might hide under a desk or find a place that is quiet.  But wait! What if the child has to be in one area in the classroom while the area that will help him/her to self-regulate is closed off, but still the child goes to that area?  The teacher will approach and ask the child to move.  At this point the child has hands covering ears and is kicking and telling the teacher, “No.”   No other words can come out since the child can’t come up with the words to tell the teacher that it is too loud.  Or maybe the child doesn’t have the language to state why he/she is feeling overwhelmed.  Is this a behavioral child?  No!  This is child is having a hard time processing the world around him/her and isn’t able to communicate that information.

Understanding that children process things differently is the first step for an educator to help this child.  Every child is different and will need different tools to get through the day.  Ways to help a child in the classroom is to have a designated area for breaks when things start to become overwhelming.  Have the child learn the word “Break” so he/she can start to ask for one when needed.  If you see that the child is covering ears, see if you can change how loud it is in the classroom or better yet have noise cancelling  head phones ready to go.  Just these simple steps can help children process their surroundings to where they are successful and not labeled as children with behavioral issues.  Sometimes the little things can make the biggest difference in children. 

By Vanessa Kahlon, MA 

Founder & Director of KFS School 

Kahlon Family Services 

How to Get Through a Meltdown

Meltdowns are part of life for people with developmental delays. You know what it's like that moment before the meltdown starts; you know the triggers, you see the frustration on your child's face, you hear the noises they make before the storm begins. Then it happens - they yell, they cry, they throw things, they hurt themselves and others. You feel your anxiety levels amp up, because you know that you are the person who needs to help them through it, yet you feel as though there's nothing you can do.

While this might not help every situation, we have developed a few ways in which you can bare through the mighty meltdowns in your family:

(1) Catch the triggers and prevent
Prevention is better than cure. Can you alter the environment to avoid typical frustrations? Can you catch the early signs (e.g. noises, mannerisms) and remove the child from the situation?

(2) Retreat
Go somewhere quiet - especially if you are in public. There's nothing worse than the stares of strangers, judging you without knowing the full story. Find a quiet corner in the mall, beeline back to the car, find a vacant bedroom when you're at somebody's house. Just go somewhere quiet.

(3) Prioritize safety and damage control 
This might be a good time for a "bear hug". Hold your child close, to avoid them hurting themselves or others. What can you do to help your child stay safe, and not regret their actions later on?

(4) Sit and wait - then wait some more
Once your child seems to be calming down, don't start talking. Wait far longer than you think they'll need. Test the waters by asking something - if they start yelling again, they're not ready. Wait again. Once your child can talk without losing control of their body, then move to the next phase.

(5) Explain
When the coast is clear, explain the situation with empathy. Acknowledge how the child felt, while helping them to understand why they can't have what they want.

(6) Fast forgiveness
Decide to forgive quickly. You will not feel like it, but make a rule that you won't bring it up again. Leave it, and move on.

(7) Affectionate response
The first action of forgiveness, is to give your child something positive. A word of affirmation, a hug, read a story and cuddle, or share a meal together. As the adult, your job is to show unconditional love. You are not affirming "bad behavior" - remember, you dealt with the behavior - now you're affirming the child.

(8) Repair
Avoid asking your child to say, "Sorry," to someone when you know it's not a heartfelt apology. Instead, focus more on repairing the situation. If your child needs to make an apology of action to another person, have them "fix" what was broken. If it means physically fixing an item they broke, give them some tape and let them fix it. If it's giving ice to someone who is hurt, show them to the freezer and have them wrap it in paper towel. Remember - the repair is not for you, or even the other party. You are showing your child how to make "right" the wrongs in their life. This is a powerful life lesson.

Summer Camp is Coming!

We are excited to announce that the KFS Summer camp is just around the corner! This year we will be offering both Lower and Upper Elementary camps. This camp will be individualized to meet your children exactly where they're 'at' in life. Both groups will be packed with activity, adventure and the unique personal growth that comes from learning to be part of a group.

 

The camp will focus on the experiences our children need to navigate life at their level. We focus on school recess skills, as well as developing ways to be an active participant in the classroom. For some children, we pay attention to the physical activity component of recess games, whereas for others, we focus on keeping recess games fun and fair. KFS Summer Camp is fully devoted to customizing each camp to the needs of the children who attend.

 

Through a range of activities, such as; cooking, crafts, grocery shopping, hiking, animal care and imaginative play, we work on developing life skills. Learning how to take turns, stop something when they're asked, take care of others, advocate for themselves and learning tools for self regulation are all part of what we set out to achieve.

 

A typical day of KFS Summer Camp includes;

 

• 9am Arrival and social time
   
• 9:10am Yoga

Relaxation and breathing, followed by YEAS Yoga practice aimed at developing awareness of the body/mind connection.

• 9:30am Morning Meeting

Discuss the schedule, icebreaker activities, general "check in."

• 10am Physical Activity/Recess Skills

Basics of soccer, foursquare, tag etc. at Lake Park.

• 11:30am Prepare for lunch

Campers set the table and prepare to eat as a group.

• 12 noon Eat lunch together

Lunch is about socially engaging around the table. All campers and leaders remain at the table for the full half hour, learning to wait, make polite conversation and participate in a group plan.

• 12:30pm Rest Time/Read Aloud

Kids have a chance to recuperate from the busy morning by listening to a story. Leaders ask comprehension questions and encourage open discussion on the themes of the book. All books are chosen to be relevant to the behavioral needs of the campers.

• 1pm Activity

E.g. Cafe day: campers take $5 to a cafe and have to figure out what they can buy within their budget. They are expected to look the cashier in the eye and politely ask for what they want.

• 2:30pm Yoga/Breathing
   
• 2:45pm Closing Circle

A chance for kids to express the highlights, lowlights and lessons learned during the day.

 

This schedule is just an outline, every day is slightly different. One day per week, we run a cooking class - giving the kids a chance to see a recipe through from idea to completion. They vote on what to make, then create a shopping list and we go to the grocery store as a team. After finding the ingredients, they make the meal in the kitchen and serve it to each other. We also typically have a beach day, where we learn the skills of taking public transit and the time management to fit our activities in within our schedule. Oh - did we forget to mention sandcastles? Beach day is a great time to throw off all this serious business and have some fun!

 

We know that summer for the kids doesn't always mean summer for the parents so we are offering extended care until 5pm.