Three of the children from the 1-2 age group spent the day in the 2-3s room today, to ease them into transitioning between rooms. They were O'a, G'e and C'e. I was already familiar with all 3 of them, and they were familiar with me as well.
O'a and G'e already knew my name, as they usually call out to me if they see me walking by. C'e remembered a little game I had taught her, which was to go 'Oh oh oh!' in an increasing pitch, sort of like a singing exercise.
Initially, G'e seemed to adjust well to the room. He spoke very clearly in short sentences, like saying "Help", or "Me hat", or "More". He also responded well to instructions, such as "Please sit in the book area" or "Please pick up the counters you've dropped on the floor".
During outdoor play, he even spent most of his time playing with F'n. They shared a ball, with F'n kicking it and G'e throwing it.
However, I feel G'e got a bit confused and frustrated by the rules of the 2-3s room. When he went to the sand/water area, he was told that only one person was allowed, and that person wasn’t him at the time. He also spent a lot of time trying to get some cars off other children who were hoarding them, and so he was ushered away again.
Later on G'e began putting his feet on other children, or on their chairs, which greatly upset them.
In the ICT room, the children were told that whoever sat the nicest would be rewarded by feeding the fish. B'a sat very nicely, and so fed the fish. As soon as the reward was over, she began to be exhibit challenging behaviour.
Moving Forward
I suppose it takes time for the children to get used to transitioning from one room to another. At least the 3 of them seemed relatively at ease. When I was in another nursery setting, I was responsible for accompanying a child from the 1-2s room to the 2-3s room. She was greatly upset, crying whenever I left her, and hardly even touching her food.
I wonder if G'e began to disturb the other children with his feet as a sign of protest or frustration.
I think B'a’s behaviour was a good example of the downside of using reward systems to manipulate children. Once they figure it out, they themselves will learn to use the system to their advantage.
4 comments:
bella smart girl she is :)
So wht are you plnnign to do to correct this behviour?
She does seem really bright, although she can't seem to figure out what blue is. :)
Actually, it's pretty hard to improve her self-discipline, because she seems to get preferential treatment because she's so attached to some of the staff.
Like during meal times, all the children have to be sat at the table, but if Bella kicks a fuss, she'll usually be allowed to shadow some of the staff members, if she behaves.
This of course makes the other children think, if she can do it, why can't I?
do they follow then?
do all children like shadowing the staff members?
Yes, if the children see someone not "following the rules" and getting away with it, they will instantly follow suit. Like if someone is not in the line, not sat down, making loud noises etc, the others will quickly join in.
Most kids will check out what an adult is doing because they're curious about everything, even if an adult pretends he's looking at something on a blank wall. :) Actually shadowing for extended periods of time is done by some, but not all kids.
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