Hitting

Happy New School Year!

For many of us, the year new school year has begun (or will shortly) and we all know what that means…new kiddos!  New students are “like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are going to get”.  It sounds cheesy, but it is absolutely true!  Setting expectations high and being clear what the rules are in your classroom is critical to solid management.  The best way to do this is through modeling your grace and courtesy during your circle time every day for several weeks or all year, and being consistent in the classroom.  Beyond that, well, things happen like…

 

Hitting

What do you do?

 I would first address the hitting child with “Johnny, hands are not for hitting.  Hitting hurts!  Hands are for working, rolling rugs, and petting your kitty. (Please insert your own things hands can do, gosh that sounds funny!)

Why did you hit?” most often, you get a shoulder shrug or an “I don’t know”. 

“Johnny we have to talk Mark now, he is crying.”  This is when you are going to whisper coach the two through a resolution. 

“Mark, please tell Johnny how you feel.” He says, “Sad”.  “Please tell Johnny why you are sad.”  He says, “I was hit.” “Tell Johnny that you don’t like to be hit.”  He tells the offending child using an “I” statement (I don’t like it when you hit me, it hurts).

The final piece is that I ask if the child who was hurt needs care, like a hug.  Then ask if the offending child can offer some care.  I do not make children apologize.  A forced apology is meaningless and equal to a lie.  If the child looks remorseful, point that out! 

"Johnny, your face tells me that you might feel bad about hitting Mark.”  Then move on.  Don’t bring it up again unless it happens again.  If it does, keep the child at your side to work for a little while to observe what might be setting him/her off.

Keep checking-in!  In the next posts I will cover wandering students, inappropriate observation, disruptive voice and misuse of the materials.