Positive Behavior Support in Early Childhood Settings

Tim Lewis, Ph.D. & Sarah MooreUniversity of Missouri

OSEP Center on Positive Behavioral Intervention & Supports

pbis.org

Big Ideas

• Program-wide vs. school-wide• Primary focus at classroom level• Data collection challenges• Developmentally appropriate / need for direct

instruction of social behavior• Intensity match intensity of challenges across the

continuum• Apply basic logic of PBS across

– Data, practices, systems

Starting Point

• We cannot “make” students learn or behave• We can create environments to increase the

likelihood students learn and behave• Environments that increase the likelihood of social

and academic success are guided by a core curriculum, adapted to reflect student need, and implemented with consistency and fidelity

Essential Features at the School Level

• Teams of educators within the school (administrator)

• Data-based decision making• Instructional Focus

– Teach & Practice• Acknowledge student mastery of social

skills– Positive Feedback

Universal School-Wide Features

• Clearly define expected behaviors (Rules)– All Settings– Classrooms

• Procedures for teaching & practicing expected behaviors

• Procedures for encouraging expected behaviors• Procedures for discouraging problem behaviors• Procedures for data-based decision making• Family Awareness and Involvement

Area/Activity Expectation

Be Safe Be Responsible Be Respectful

Suggestions for arrival and departure

Stay with adultStop and watch for vehiclesHold adult’s hand in parking lotUse walking feet on stairs, ramp, and sidewalksHold onto railing

Follow the safety rulesAsk/sign for help if needed

Listen to adultsUse good greeting wordsUse good manners words

Classroom entry and welcome

Keep entryway clear for othersUse walking feetKeep hands to self

Go to cubbyRemove and hang up coat in cubbyGo to sink and wash handsChoose activity and join friendsAsk/sign for help if needed

Use good greeting wordsUse good manners wordsShare and take turnsUse indoor voice

Bathroom

Walk up and down stairsHold onto railingKeep hands to self

Go potty, wipe, and flushWash hands with soap and waterTurn off faucetUse three turns of paper towelsDry handsAsk/sign for help if neededReturn to activity

Indicate need to go potty by telling teacherWait turnUse good manners words

Classroom

Use walking feetKeep feet on the floorTouch friends gentlyUse materials only for intended purposeCough/sneeze in elbow

Listen Wait and take turnsShareClean upAsk/sign for help if neededFollow instructions

Use inside voiceUse good talking wordsTake care of classroom propertyBe a good friend to everyone

Group Contingency for Appropriate Behavior (Beehive)

WE ARE:BEING SAFE, KINDAND RESPONSIBLE

WE FILLED OUR BEE HIVE TODAY!

Do You Like to Buzz?(sung to the tune of ‘Do Your Ears Hang Low?’)

Do you like to buzz?Are you covered in fuzz?

Do you call a hive a homeIn the garden where you roam?

Do you know how to make honey?Are your stripes a little funny?

Do you like to buzz?

Social Skills Lesson PlanClassroom

• Skill: Be Safe – Use Walking Feet • Steps: • Introduce Skill

– A way to be safe is to use walking feet in the classroom• Teach the Expected Behavior• Discuss with students why it is safe to use walking feet instead of running in the classroom.• Ask students: When do we need to use our walking feet? (possible answers: when we are inside, when

going to the playground, going to the bus, going home, etc…)• Demonstrate

– Show the children what using your walking feet looks like (thumbs up)– Show the children what using your running feet looks like (thumbs down)– Show the children what using your walking feet looks like (thumbs up)– Model walking, marching, stomping -e.g., “walking feet go 1and 2 and 3 and 4 and 5”

• Practice– Different opportunities through out the day– Have students practice walking softly, loudly, quickly, slowly, forward, backward– “We walk, we walk, we walk, and we stop” (repeat)

• Review/Re-teach– Use pre-corrects before “walking” activities begin—“We are getting ready to go outside for recess.

What do we need to do with our feet?”– Re-teach the skill as needed

• Reinforce– Specific praise—“You are using your walking feet while walking to recess! Good job!”– Other reinforcers

Last Revised: 8/01/12

TLCLC Lesson Plan Expectation: Kind

Setting: All School Settings Skill: Use Kind Words

Matrix Expectations Be Kind Matrix Rule and Steps

To use kind words means: Use words that won’t hurt others feelings Tone, volume and attitude while we speak are part of using kind words Use our manners and say Please and Thank You

Context Identify the locations(s) where performance of rule is expected.

All School Settings

Tell Introduce the rule and why it is important

Teacher gives students some examples of using kind words.

1. Jill is carrying books back to the book shelf. She has too many

to carry by herself. She asks Sally “Could you please help me carry these books to the shelf?” Sally says “Sure!” Jill says, “Thank You!”

2. Annie is walking to her cubby. She accidently bumps Tim. Annie says, “Oops I’m sorry.” Tim says, “that’s ok.”

Discuss how we ask to play with something or when we want something. We should use our kind words of please and thank you

Discuss why kind words are important. Discuss how it makes you feel

when someone has used kind words with you and how it makes you feel when someone uses hurtful words with you.

Show Teacher demonstrates or models the rule. Teacher models non-examples

The teacher role plays being a child coloring a picture. Suzy asks if she can

please use her yellow marker. Teacher models kind response of “yes but can you give it right back when you are finished?” Suzy says “thank you and yes I will give it right back”.

The teacher asks 2 students to model a situation in the classroom where they are playing a game. Both of them want to go first. Have them use kind words about how they can solve the problem. One can ask if they can please go first then the other student can go first next time. Have the student thank the other student for letting him go first.

Teacher models the non-example: Teacher role plays being a child playing a game with Sam. Sam accidently hits the board and the pieces move. The teacher then responds with a non-example of kind words and says “Look what you! Why did you do that?”

Teacher then asks class do you see the differences. What are they? How did Suzy feel? How did Sam feel?

Practice Give students opportunities to role play the rule across all relevant settings

Generate a list of kind words.

Have children sit in a circle and the teacher will direct one child to ask for the ball using kind words: “Jack, please pass the ball to me”. Then Tom will say “thank you” when the ball is passed to him. Continue to play the game until every child has a turn.

Precorrect/Remind Anticipate and give students a reminder to perform behavior

“Before we go out to recess let’s discuss what it means to use kind words. Be kind when you are asking to play with a toy by saying please and thank you. Remember how it feels when someone uses kind words with you and what it feels like when someone uses hurtful words with you.”

Supervise Move, scan and interact with students

Move, scan and interact with students in various settings (playground, gym, classroom) to give them feedback about how they are doing using kind words with others. Correct as needed.

Feedback Observe student performance & give positive, specific feedback to students

“You used kind words when saying please, Jill! That was so nice of you!”

“Lisa thank you for using a kind words and saying that’s ok when Tammy accidently bumped into you. That was nice friend!”

Correction Observe student performance & give specific feedback when correcting behavior

“Carl, Lucy asked if you could help her and you said no dummy, was that using kind words? What is a kind way of answering her?”

Reteach Practice throughout the day

Have students share a time when they used kind words with others.

Turn and Talk

• What have you implemented in your settings to date?

Classroom Supports

Essential1. Classroom expectations & rules defined and taught (all use school-

wide, create classroom examples)

2. Procedures & routines defined and taught

3. Continuum of strategies to acknowledge appropriate behavior in place and used with high frequency (4:1)

4. Continuum of strategies to respond to inappropriate behavior in place and used per established school-wide procedure

5. Students are actively supervised (pre-corrects and positive feedback)

6. Students are given multiple opportunities to respond (OTR) to promote high rates of academic engagement

7. Activity sequence promotes optimal instruction time and student engaged time

8. Instruction is differentiated based on student need

Systems

• Teach– Brief in-service, single topic focus

• Practice (performance feedback)– Peer coaching

pbismissouri.org

Turn and Talk

• What are some of the challenges you have had to date?

Assessment Tools

PBIS.org• Pre-School-wide

Evaluation Tool (SET)• Pre- Self Assessment

Survey (SAS)• Benchmarks Of Quality• Team Implementation

Checklist

Other• Teaching Pyramid

Observation Tool• Inventory of Practices

for Promoting Social Emotional Competence

Needs Assessment

Pre-school SASPre-school SET

Pre-school SAS

PRE-SET (Horner, Benedict, & Todd, 2005)

• Adaptation of an assessment tool called the School-wide Evaluation Tool (SET) used in K-12 educational settings to measure critical features of school-wide PBS.

• The Pre-SET assesses classroom and program-wide variables across 9 categories:

A. Expectations DefinedB. Behavioral Expectations TaughtC. Appropriate Behavior AcknowledgedD. Organized and Predictable EnvironmentE. Additional SupportsF. Family InvolvementG. Monitoring & Decision-MakingH. ManagementI. Program & District-Wide Support

Pre-SET Administration

• Information necessary for completion of the Pre-SET is gathered from multiple sources including review of permanent products, observations, and staff and child interviews.

• A Pre-SET should be conducted for each classroom within an early childhood program if the implementation status or practices (e.g., classroom rules) are different for each classroom.

• The Pre-SET may be conducted at the program level if all classrooms within the early childhood program are at the same implementation status and use the same practices (e.g., have same classroom rules).

System/Intervention Evaluation

Pre-school ODRs?

EC Behavioral Report

TLCLC Office Behavioral Report

Child’s Name: _________________________________________ Classroom Teacher: ________________________________________

Person Reporting: ____________________________________________ Date: _________________ Time: ________________________

PROBLEM BEHAVIOR LOCATION OTHERS INVOLVED Externalizing ____ Physical Aggression ____ Inappropriate Language ____ Property Destruction Internalizing ____ Crying, whining through activity ____ Isolated play after prompt to join others Non-compliance ____ Refusal ____ Disruption of learning ____ Self-abuse/stimulation ____ Other:

____ Structured classroom activity ____ Unstructured classroom activity ____ Transition ____ Hallway ____ Playground ____ Gym ____ Other: _________________________

_____ Peer(s) _____ Teacher _____ Aide _____ Specialist _____ Substitute _____ Administration _____ Other: ________________________________

INITIAL TRIGGER FOR BEHAVIOR CONSEQUENCE FOR BEHAVIOR

____ Adult request/redirection ____ Unstructured play ____ Peer provoked ____ Difficult task ____ Adult not in close proximity ____ No peer attention ____ Other: _________________________________________________________

Level One ____ Prompt/redirection ____ Reteaching of rule/routine ____ Practice skill ____ Behavior choice given ____ Communication method provided Level Two ____ Removal from activity ____ Conference with student ____ Loss of privilege Level Three _____ Moved to safe spot _____ Think sheet/student conference _____ Parent conference ____ Behavior contract ____ Other: ______________________________________________________

Comments Comments

This report will not be sent home. It is for collection for anecdotal information only. If parents are contacted, note how: In person ____ By phone _____ Date parent contacted: ___________________________________ Parent Response: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Classroom Behavior Log

Teacher: Date Time Student Behavior Comments

Turn and Talk

• What solutions have worked to resolve some of the challenges to date?

Positive Behavior Support in Early Childhood Settings

Tim Lewis, Ph.D. & Sarah MooreUniversity of Missouri

OSEP Center on Positive Behavioral Intervention & Supports

pbis.org