Some of you are reading that title and thinking, “Sources of behavior? That two year-old having a tantrum on the carpet – THAT’S the source of behavior!” Now, right from the start, I need to say that I am not implying that we absolve children of all responsibility for their choices. But at the same time, if we can be observant and consider what may be triggering those choices, we can know how to use that moment as a teaching opportunity and take preventative steps in the future as well.
For No Reason. Just as an example, I recently worked with a group of teachers and one expressed concern over a child who was aggressive and hitting “for no reason”. Now, it did appear to be for no reason, there was no provocation from the other children. But it’s difficult for me to accept “for no reason” as a behavioral description. It seems all you can do for “no reason” is let the child know the behavior is not appropriate and then give a generic, and often inappropriate punishment (like a “naughty chair”) that will have little corrective influence, as it was not tied in an authentic way to the source of the behavior. As I probed a bit into this particular situation the teachers realized that he usually acted out against one child in particular, and that child was what they called “an easy target”. Now this little tidbit differentiated the act for me.
