Chapter 9 &10

11.       I am currently student teaching at a Headstart. One thing that is really big in Headstart is working on routines. Many of the children have difficulty following routines and directions, which are extremely important skills they will need in preparation for kindergarten. One thing that the children have been working on extensively is hand-washing. The children wash their hands at least 4 times in the four hours that they are there so it is important for them to get the routine down. If I was assessing the children from a behavioral view I would simply watch to see if they could go through the steps without getting distracted or skipping a step. When I first entered the classroom I thought this would be a pretty simple task, but many of the children will either forget to use soap, not rub their hands together, or forget to get a paper towel after. If the children manage to go through the steps fully and correctly, they sometimes can’t fight the temptation to play with the suds in the sink which means they have to start all over. I try to make sure that I understand the reasoning behind each child’s routine. I have noticed that some like to play in the suds for attention, so in order to refrain from reinforcing the behavior, I will usually look away and assist another child while watching to make sure the child does the steps correctly the second time around.  From a social cognitive view, I would likely ask the students what the steps are to washing their hands as they lined up in front of the sink. I would ask what was ‘okay to do’ and what ‘isn't a good choice’ when washing hands. I have noticed that the children in my class tend to be really independent, so if they are off task, a simple ‘do you need me to help you?’ usually gets them back on track. Above the sink is a step-by-step guide in pictures of how to properly wash hands so that tends to help the children with their self-evaluating.

22.       From a behaviorist perspective, I would try to do a lot of positive reinforcing of Willard’s behavior when he was on task. I would begin by making a picture schedule for Willard so whenever he asked if it was time to go outside I would just point to where we were in the schedule and then point to the picture of outside time and ask Willard if it was time yet. I would also include some punishment for Willard. Leaving the classroom can be extremely dangerous, so I would be firm in letting Willard know that leaving was not acceptable and he would have to have a moment to himself whenever he tried to leave the classroom. I would mainly try to focus on dishing out positive reinforcement for Willard since I know that it is more effective than punishment. Willard reminds me a bit of the boy from my class that I talked about before. Once the boy realized that he was capable of doing plenty of things himself, he stopped asking for help so much. I think building the same type of confidence would be really important for Willard. I would try to challenge him to work on his tasks for a certain amount of time without distraction, and then really praise him once he completed the challenge. I would also do the same for asking to go outside. I would say things like ‘Willard, let’s see if you can go until lunch time before asking if it’s time to go outside.’ Then praise him once he made it and extend the time until he wasn't asking anymore.