Spotlight on Young Children

Charis L. Wahman, PhD, BCBA-D, is assistant professor of special education at Michigan State University. She also serves as a clinician in early care settings to support young children with social and emotional needs. Charis has conducted research, published articles, and presented on the social and emotional development of young children and families' experiences with suspension and expulsion at national conferences.Janice K. Lee, PhD, BCBA, is state coordinator for the Nevada Pyramid Model Partnership through the University of Nevada, Reno. In addition to conducting research and publishing articles on the pyramid model, she also provides training, coaching, consultation, and technical assistance on social and emotional skill development to teachers, practitioners, and families to prevent and address challenging behavior.

Spotlight on Young Children: Challenging Behavior provides perspective from numerous voices in the field, sorted into tiered practices from the pyramid model—preventive, targeted, and intensive and individualized. Throughout the collection, the guiding premise of cultivating environments that are relationally safe and culturally responsive is effectively conveyed. By integrating reflective questions and a message of self-care as foundational practices, this book is likely to be useful to both new and experienced early education professionals.—Anita Osborn, Licensed Educational Psychologist and Infant-Family Early Childhood Mental Health SpecialistEveryone working with children and teachers is very aware of the dysregulation that children are exhibiting now more than ever, with behavior crying out for support and guidance. This latest excellent volume of NAEYC’s Spotlight on Young Children series is full of extremely applicable research and practical strategies that can support all of the areas educators are responsible for: tools to help us teachers stay regulated ourselves; tools to teach children about resilience and self-regulation; and tools to build compassionate classroom communities.—Joanie Calem, Inclusion Advocate and Workshop Presenter, First Do No HarmThis resource has some very good advice for teachers and caregivers of young children, especially regarding cultural understanding and responsiveness. There are excellent suggestions for gaining an understanding of family practices and values as well as the cultures of children’s families. In addition, there are valuable tools for analyzing children’s challenging behavior with ways to reflect on how to respond.—Nora Krieger, Associate Professor Emerita, Bloomfield College of Montclair State UniversitySpotlight on Young Children: Challenging Behavior offers a nuanced look at an increasingly important topic in early childhood. Each chapter provides professionals with new lenses and tools to help children learn and grow with patience and grace, even in the most difficult moments.—Adam Holland, Technical Assistance Specialist, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute

• IntroductionCharis L. Wahman and Janice K. Lee& Part One: Preventive PracticesBecoming a Social and Emotional Teacher: The Heart of Good GuidanceKatherine M. Zinsser, Susanne A. Denham, and Timothy W. Curby Culturally Responsive Strategies to Support Young Children with Challenging BehaviorCharis L. Wahman and Elizabeth A. SteedCulturally Appropriate Positive Guidance with Young ChildrenZeynep Isik-Ercan Understanding Young Children’s Play: Seeing Behavior Through the Lens of Attachment TheoryShulamit N. Ritblatt and Sascha Longstreth Outdoor Recess Matters! Preventing and Reducing Children’s Challenging Behavior on the PlaygroundHsiu-Wen Yang, Michaelene M. Ostrosky, Paddy Cronin Favazza, Yusuf Akemoğlu, W. Catherine Cheung, and Katherine Aronson-Ensign Part Two: Targeted Practices Building Meaningful Relationships: Tips for Children Who Display Challenging BehaviorCecilia Scott-Croff and Sori Palacio A Three-Step Approach: Promoting Young Children’s Self-Regulation and Language During ConflictKyla McRoy, Hope K. Gerde, and Laurie Linscott Instead of Discipline, Use GuidanceDan Gartrell Responses to Challenging Behavior: Why Some Common Strategies Don’t Work and What to Do InsteadKeri Giordano, Emily Kokkinakis, and Briana Calcagno-Davi Part Three: Intensive and Individualized Practices Becoming a Better Behavior Detective: Applying a Developmental and Contextual Lens on Behavior to Promote Social and Emotional DevelopmentClaire D. Vallotton, Jennifer A. Mortensen, Melissa M. Burnham, Kalli B. Decker, and Marjorie Beeghly Functional Assessment and Positive Behavior Support: The Role of Early Learning Program Leaders and TeachersBarbara Kaiser and Judy Sklar Rasminsky Reducing Challenging Behavior During Transitions: Strategies for Early Childhood Educators to Share with ParentsAnne M. Butler and Michaelene M. Ostrosky Index