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Got
A Bad Attitude?
Ever had to
deal with a child who has a negative attitude? What can
we as educators do to help this child? Well, how about an
attitude exercise?
An attitude
exercise is an activity that can be done on a daily,
weekly or monthly basis depending on the need of the
child. The exercise can be used for an individual or a
group. The exercise should be used as an improvement
tool.
Here is an
example:
I Know I Can!
This week I will work on being nice
to Charlie. Even though he constantly takes my toys I am
willing to try to talk with him instead of screaming at
him and then biting him.
This goal may take a child awhile to reach. If the child
is overwhelmed by such an exercise, it may be better to
shorten the exercise and make the goal easier to obtain.
For example,
Today I will not bite.
 When
this child’s toy is taken away from him he is allowed to
yell and scream (maybe even hit) but he cannot bite. Once
this goal is reached, then work on the hitting. If we are
able to set small goals, the children are more likely to
accomplish them and not feel overwhelmed. In this example
the attitude exercise is for one individual.
For a class, a
good goal to work on may be how they say thank you. An
educator may have specific ways he or she wishes a child
to appreciate another individual. This would also be a
good way to start to introduce manners as well.
Attitude
exercises can help to modify a child’s behavior as well as
increase his or her self-esteem. Gifted children
especially tend to need reinforcement in the socialization
area. By giving gifted children simple goals they will be
able to accomplish them and begin to become a productive
member of the group. Once a child feels a taste of
socialization success, he or she will want to continue to
make and keep friends.
There will from
time to time be temporary setbacks, but we as adults must
help the child to overcome the setback and move on
successfully. The educator must believe in the child and
show the child that he or she must also believe in
him/herself as well. We all will have failure from time
to time and we must help the child deal with this as well.
 Failure
is difficult for a gifted child to deal with. An educator
must understand that failure is something a gifted child
usually does not have to deal with and when failure is not
dealt with it turns into anger. It is our job as
educators to let a child know that it is perfectly normal
to experience failure and help the child to find a
success. For example, point out the positive attributes
the child possesses. Or review past successes. For
example, if the child has not bitten in three weeks and
had a relapse, focus on the number of times the child did
not bite in a negative situation. It is important to
rebuild the child’s self-esteem and reestablish the goal.
Attitude
exercises are easy ways to help children modify and learn
new or old behaviors. Use your imagination to help the
children achieve good behaviors. It is also a good idea
to share the goals with parents so they can reinforce the
goal at home as well. Perhaps the parents will even have
suggestions for you to include in the exercises!
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