Challenging Behaviors in the Early Childhood Environment
They [misbehaviors] are merely his reactions to an environment that has become inadequate...But we do not notice that. And since it is understood that the child must do what adults tell him, even though his environment no longer suits his needs, if he does not comply we say that he is ‘naughty’ and correct him. Most of the time we are unaware of the cause of his ‘naughtiness.’ Yet the child, by his conduct, proves what we have just said. The closed environment is felt as a constraint … —Maria Montessori From Childhood to Adolescence Helping young children through challenging behavior can be a challenge itself. Training, knowledge, and experience all help the early childhood teacher prepare for those inevitable times when a child requires some extra support. Recently, however, there seems to be a distressing trend to expel young children who exhibit challenging behavior. The rising expulsion rates in early childhood settings are staggering. Over 8,000 public preschool children were su...