CHDV 110

Principles and Practices

Guidance Scenario

Name: Michelle Iaquinta

Date: 22 April 2013
Instructor: Sandy Visser
Victor Valley College

Scenario 1: Julia put down the Lion King book for a minute so she could go to the bathroom and
when she came back Lisa was reading it. They are now pulling on the book and getting angry.
How would you respond?
What guidance tool will you use? Why did you choose this tool?

The first guidance tool I would use would be Conflict Resolution. This tool can cause
the problem to get resolved faster. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, focus on
solutions rather than causes, (Feeney, p. 306).
The second guidance tool I would use would be choices. According to Feeney, Moravcik,
and Nolte, one of the golden rules for responding to difficult behaviors would be to, give
real choices, (Feeney, p. 306).
The third guidance tool would be Reflective and Responsive (R&R) Statements. This
would help the girls have a positive relationship in the future. According to Feeney,
Moravcik, and Nolte, when you use these statements frequently, children are aware that
you value their actions and interests, (Feeney, p. 288).

Give a detailed description of the steps you would take in using the guidance tool, including
specific language you would use and how the child(ren) might respond each step of the
way.

I would approach the girls and take one in each arm to stop the arguing. Lisa might be the
one holding the Lion King book at the moment. I would say, I can see you are both
angry right now. Lisa, is it alright if I hold the book for now? She might hand me the
book. Thank you Lisa. Julia, you want to tell me what happened? She might say, I was
reading the book and left it there to go to the bathroom. Then when I came back, Lisa was
reading it. I would say, she took your book without asking? Julia nodded. Okay.
Lisa, tell me what happened. Lisa might say, I was walking over here and say the book.
I started to read it but then Julia took it away from me.
Once I heard both sides of the story, I would ask them what they would like to do. I
would say, do you guys know how we could fix the problem? Julia might say, we
could read it together. I would say, Lisa, do you want to read the book with Julia? She
might nod. Okay, so lets find a place where you two can read together. We walk over
to the couch. They might jump on the couch and sit next to each other. I would give the
book to them. They open the book and start reading the first page.
I would stay close to the couch. I would tell the girls, I can see how you both are
enjoying reading together. Once I notice they are getting along, I start walking around
the classroom.

What short term and long term goals for guidance would you be supporting with your
choice of guidance tool?

Short term goals: I am enforcing safety in my response to the situation. I am helping the
girls have a positive relationship with not only the both of them but me as well. I support
their decisions by helping them come up with their own solutions to the problem. By
keeping close, I am helping everyone bond in a positive way.
Long term goals: I think my approach helped the girls establish critical thinking. Once
they are asked what they think about the situation, they learn how to solve the problem
without anyone elses help. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, when we have

involved children in handling problems with us, we have found that they also start to do it
quite effectively in their own problems with peers, (Feeney, p. 294). Showing children
how to cope with these problems can help them later on to solve problems on their own.
Once they learn at a young age, they can solve conflicts a lot easier in the future.
According to Feeney, Moravick, and Nolte, children learn to treat others with respect
and fairness when teachers strive both to model and to teach these beliefs and values,
(Feeney, p. 295).
Scenario 2: John and Sara have discovered that they can make small balls with play dough and
sling them across the room with their plastic spoons so they stick to the wall. They think it is
very funny! How would you respond?
What guidance tool will you use? Why did you choose this tool?

The first guidance tool I would use Logical Consequences. This tool will help the safety
of other children and resolve the negative behavior. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and
Nolte, younger children can benefit from situations where teachers use clearly related
consequences, (Feeney, p. 307).
The second guidance tool would be to help aid the child pick another activity. This tool is
Redirection. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, when children are behaving in
ways that are unsafe or damaging to the environment, you can redirect their energy and
attention to an activity similar to the one that is unacceptable, (Feeney, p. 299).

Give a detailed description of the steps you would take in using the guidance tool, including
specific language you would use and how the child(ren) might respond every step of the
way.

As I observe John and Sara slinging plato across the room, I walk toward them calmly. I
would say, I can see you are having fun throwing plato across the room with your plastic
spoons. The might laugh and continue throwing the plato. Well I know you are
enjoying this but you might hurt someone else. So let me hold onto your spoons and
plato. I will come help you clean up the plato.
They might listen and start cleaning up the plato. John, Sara, and I pick up all the small
balls of plato and place them in a small bag. Once we finish, John and Sara want the
spoons and plato back. I would say, well lets think of a different activity that wont
cause a big mess. John, do you have any thoughts. He might say, we could play in the
sand box and make sand castles. I would ask Sara, would you rather play in the sand
box with John? She might nod. I would tell John and Sara, well lets walk to the sand
box. Once we reach the sand box, I let them get comfortable at the sand box and let
them continue playing.

What short term and long term goals for guidance would you be supporting with your
choice of guidance tool?

Short term goals: I think my approach will help the two children on how to take
responsibilities for their actions. It might have been fun to display negative behavior, but
they have to learn the consequences. By helping them clean up and redirecting the
activity, I have shown them that they can trust me. This approach has helped us gain a
positive relationship.

Long term goals: I think my approach had an effect in which the children know their
boundaries. Since a child likes predictability, setting boundaries can benefit the child.
According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, young children feel safe when they know
that there are limitsboundaries that allow for personal choice within the confines of
safety, (Feeney, p. 297). The children trust me since I have made their environment
predictable. They feel safer in the classroom which can cause less negative behaviors in
the future. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, we find that children are best
served when teachers develop a set of guidelines, (Feeney, p. 298).

Scenario 3: The children are allowed to play with paint in the art area, but Jose carried his paint
brush over to the block area where he is making one of the blocks blue. He is concentrating very
hard on painting the block. How would you resond?
What guidance tool will you use? Why did you choose this tool?

The first guidance tool I would use would be Encouragement Instead of Praise. This
tool helps the child feel recognized. I chose this tool because according to Feeney,
Moravcik, and Nolte, teachers useto express genuine pleasure about a childs actions,
but rather as a means to manipulate future behavior, (Feeney, p. 289).
The second guidance tool shows interest in the child and the activity. This tool is
Reflective and Resopnsive (R&R) Statements. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and
Nolte, good early childhood educators are skilled at responding to childrens messages
in ways that support their sense of self and their learning about people and relationships,
(Feeney, p. 288).

Give a detailed description of the steps you would take in using the guidance tool, including
specific language you would use and how the child(ren) might respond each step of the
way.

As I walk up to Jose I would say, I can see you are coloring the blocks. I can see you are
using a small paint brush. He might continue to concentrate on his coloring. As he still
colors I continue to tell him what I see. I noticed how you are using blue. Is blue your
favorite color? He might tell me that his favorite color is blue and he likes painting with
his favorite color.
According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, encouragement is descriptive and
nonjudgmental, (Feeney, p. 290). As I keep on observing, I would say, You decided to
color the blocks today. It takes skill to be able to paint the blocks. He might smile to my
compliment about his work. I would ask him, Do you need my help? He would tell, I
think I can do this on my own. Once I noticed he did not need my help I would continue
to walk around and observe other students.

What short term and long term goals for guidance would you be supporting with your
choice of guidance tool?

Short term goals: My response to this scenario has showed Jose that I acknowledge him
when he is doing something he likes. Rather than telling him how good of a job he did, I
listed what I saw him doing. I let him feel that I understood what he was doing and that I
took interest. I am supporting his creativity and imagination.
Long term goals: I think my approach will support the long term goals by developing
creativity for Jose. When he is working on hard on his painting, I let him know that I care

what he is doing even when he is not asking for my attention. According to Feeney,
Moravcik, and Nolte, encouragements, long-term effects strengthen us and encourage
our growth, (Feeney, p. 289). By encouraging Jose, I am creating the likeliness for this
behavior to occur more often. Im helping him develop the ability to work on something
diligently in order to reach a goal. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte,
encouragement helps children identify their own strengths and interests, rather than
relying on adults assessments, (Feeney, p. 289). My approach has helped Jose express
himself and doing it in his own way.
Scenario 4: Brenda loves playing in the house area. She always wants to pretend that she is the
baby and that Desiree is the mommy. They play together for long periods of time without
conflict. However, when another child tries to enter the play Brenda becomes frustrated and
angry, sometimes yelling at the other child. Today when Katie wanted to join in their play, she
grabbed up all the dress up clothes and said, No one else can play in our family. Its just the
mommy and the baby!!? How would you respond?
What guidance tool will you use? Why did you choose this tool?

The guidance tool I would use would be Conflict Resolution. This tool will help the
children resolve the problem with each other. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte,
focus on solutions rather than causes, (Feeney, p. 306).
The second guidance tool would be Redirection. This tool makes all the children feel
important to the situation. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, redirection
respects childrens focus and energy while helping them to engage in an activity that is
acceptable and appropriate, (Feeney, p. 299).

Give a detailed description of the steps you would take in using the guidance tool, including
specific language you would use and how the child(ren) might respond each step of the
way.

I would approach the situation calmly. I notice Katie might be crying and Brenda is mad.
I sit Katie next to me and put my arm around her waist. I would say, I can see you are
sad Katie. Do you want to tell me what happened? She might say, I wanted to play with
Brenda and Desiree but Brenda didnt want me to play with them. Okay. Brenda, I can
see you are mad. Do you want to tell me what happened. Brenda might say, Well, she
wanted to play with us but she cant because only mommy and the baby can play. I
would then ask, Well do you guys know a way we could solve this problem? Katie
might say, Well, I could be the babys sister and we could play together. Brenda and
Desiree, would you like play with Katie? Desiree might say, She can play with us.
Brenda might not like the idea and say, No she cant play with us. Just me and Desiree
can play mommy and baby.
Once everybody put their input I talk to them. Well Katie, since Brenda doesnt want
anybody else to play with, do you find another game? Katie might nod. Well what
would you like to do? She might say, I could play hopscotch. Okay. Lets walk over
there together. We both walk to the other end of the playground. I watch her play
hopscotch and continue to walk around.

What short term and long term goals for guidance would you be supporting with your
choice of guidance tool?

Short term goals: My approach has helped the children learn that I respect their
opinions. When the girls asked what they wanted to do, they did not want to play
together. I showed them that their opinions counted in the situation. I let everyone put
their own input in.
Long term goals: I think that my approach will help the long term goal of critical
thinking. I let the girls figure out a solution without my help to see how they would react.
According to Feeney, Moravick, and Nolte, even young children can be given time and
opportunity to deal with conflict, (Feeney, p. 293). Mostly teachers tell the students
what is going to happen, but this does not help the students in the future. My approach
showed the students how to resolve conflicts by using logical reasonings.

Scenario 5: 3 year-old Stephen has trouble sitting at circle time. If he sits near you he talks out
constantly and pulls on whatever is in your hand. If he sits across the circle from you be pushes
the other children and tries to sit on their space, or rolls out into the middle of the circle. How
would you respond?
What guidance tool will you use? Why did you choose this tool?

The first guidance tool would be I-Message. This tool can cause the child to notice
how his behavior can affect everyone else. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and
Nolte, it states the specific condition or behavior that is problematic, (Feeney, p.
289).
The second guidance tool would be Time-in (Shadowing). This can help the child
calm down and regain themselves. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, this
technique helps, the child determine; when to go and when to return to the group,
(Feeney, pg. 308).

Give a detailed description of the steps you would take in using the guidance tool, including
specific language you would use and how the child(ren) might respond each step of the
way.

I would approach the child, and put my arm around him. I would tell him, I can see you
are mad and pushing the other kids around. Its hard for everyone to pay attention when
there are distractions. It makes me frustrated when I have to shout to calm everyone
down. He might still be in a bad mood and not respond. I would say, Is something
wrong? I can see you are feeling mad. He might not respond.
Since he is not responding, I let him sit with me a little longer for him to calm down.
Are you ready to play with everyone else or would you like to stay here with me for a
little longer. He might say, I want to stay. I let him stay with me a little longer. Are
you feeling better? He might nod. Well lets go find a place for you to play. We start
walking around to find a place for him to play.

What short term and long term goals for guidance would you be supporting with your
choice of guidance tool?

Short term goals: My approach has showed Stephen that I acknowledge his feelings and
that I understand him. When I asked him if he wanted to go play he decided to stay with
me for a little longer. He has showed me he can trust me when he is misbehaving and that
I will not punish him for acting the way he did. Letting him know that he can trust me,
has given us a positive relationship.

Long term goals: I believe my approach will help the long term goals of responsibility.
Stephen learned how he has to take responsibility for his actions and has to learn how to
calm himself down. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, treat yourself gently,
treat one another gently, treat our environment with care, (Feeney, p. 298). This shows
children to respect one another to gain the same respect from others. Stephen learned that
his behavior was distracting his fellow peers and was not respecting their willingness to
learn. According to Feeney, Moravcik, and Nolte, children are more likely to respect
and follow the guidelines when they understand the reasons for them and when the
behavior required is within their ability, (Feeney, p. 298).

Reference
Feeney, S., Moravcik, E., & Nolte, S. (2013). Who Am I in the Lives of Children? (Ninth ed.).
Washington D.C.: Pearson Education.