Behaviour support plans are essential tools for managing challenging behaviours in children by incorporating proactive and reactive strategies. These plans help in understanding the triggers and finding suitable interventions that address the underlying sensory needs.
Here are examples for integrating proactive and reactive strategies for three specific scenarios.
Child Who is 2 Years Old and Bites to Get Proprioception Input
Proactive Strategies:
Provide Alternative Sensory Input:
Refer to a Speech Pathologist to offer chewy toys or necklaces that are safe to bite.
Introduce activities like bubble blowing, making animal sounds (buzzing, roaring) during play, singing and humming throughout the day, pushing heavy objects, pulling, or carrying weighted items to satisfy proprioceptive needs.
Structured Play:
Incorporate daily activities that involve deep pressure input such as rolling a therapy ball over the child's body or providing bear hugs.
Create a sensory corner with various textures and sensory tools to explore.
Reactive Strategies:
Immediate Redirection:
When biting occurs, calmly and firmly say "No biting" and immediately redirect to an appropriate chewy toy or activity.
Comfort and Calm:
Provide comfort and calm the child with deep pressure input, such as a firm hug or squeezing a soft, squishy toy.
Use visual cues or a social story to reinforce appropriate behaviour and alternative ways to get sensory input.
Child Who is 4 Years Old and Pushes Other Children Due to Lack of Rough and Tumble Play
Proactive Strategies:
Incorporate Rough and Tumble Play:
Schedule regular, supervised rough and tumble play sessions where the child can engage in safe wrestling, tumbling, and other physical play.
Daily Physical Activity:
Include activities like obstacle courses, jumping on a trampoline, or climbing structures in the daily routine.
Use heavy work activities like pushing a weighted cart or carrying heavy books to provide additional proprioceptive input.
Reactive Strategies:
Immediate Intervention:
When the child pushes others, calmly intervene and explain that pushing is not acceptable. Redirect to an appropriate physical activity.
Social Stories and Role-Playing:
Use social stories to teach the child about appropriate ways to engage with peers and how to ask for rough and tumble play.
Role-play scenarios where the child can practice asking for physical play appropriately.
Child Who is 3 Years Old and Avoids Hand Washing Routine Due to Sensitivity to Cold Water
Proactive Strategies:
Modify the Environment:
Adjust the water temperature to lukewarm to make it more comfortable for the child.
Alternative Sensory Input:
Provide warm, damp cloths for the child to wipe their hands if running water is too aversive.
Use fun, sensory-friendly soap that has a pleasant texture and scent.
Gradual Desensitisation:
Gradually introduce the child to hand washing with cold water, starting with brief exposure and increasing the duration as the child becomes more comfortable.
Reactive Strategies:
Positive Reinforcement:
Praise and reward the child for attempting to wash their hands, even if it is only for a short time.
Comfort and Support:
Comfort the child immediately if they become distressed during hand washing and offer an alternative method such as using a warm cloth.
Use visual aids, like a step-by-step hand washing chart, to guide the child through the process and reduce anxiety.
Integrating proactive and reactive strategies in behaviour support plans helps address the sensory needs underlying challenging behaviours. By providing appropriate sensory input, structuring the environment, and using immediate, supportive interventions, caregivers and educators can effectively manage and reduce these behaviours. This approach ensures that children receive the necessary support to thrive in their environments.
If you need support, be sure to join us for our Mastering Behaviour Support Plans Webinar.
Comments