Written by Paul Dix
Scenario:
There is a corner of the school that you have still not fully explored. It is not that you fear "the old shelter", it is just that the older boys hang out there and they are not particularly welcoming. Many of the trickier customers in year 6 have curated response styles that experienced teenagers would be proud of. They huddle around secreted mobile phones, laughing for attention, jockeying for position in the hierarchy. They are the biggest fish in a small pond and they swim around in their status. Individually each child is lovely to talk to but collectively the boys are tricky to manage. They bounce banter off each other in well-rehearsed rituals.
Today the boys have gone too far and you need to intervene. They have taken a tennis ball from one of the year 5s and gentle teasing will soon escalate into all out war if it is not nipped in the bud. As you approach the group you know that you need to be careful about how you intervene:
Now choose a strategy that best fits how you might intervene
A Shock and Awe - don't wait until you get there. Call to the group and warn them to stop as you run over. Use the power of you voice to put an immediate stop to their poor behaviour.
B Soft and gentle - calmly move over to the group and use some non-verbal cues to redirect the children and move everyone apart.
C Nasty and nice - use different shades of your assertiveness to bring the children to order and then diffuse the situation.
Now describe what happens in each case
A: Shock and Awe
Your first attempt at shouting across the playground doesn't go well. None of the children in the group even look up but you have managed to make 3 year 1 boys cry instantaneously. As you run towards the group shouting the rest of the children stop playing and start watching. You arrive at the group of boys just in time, if a little out of breath. Your blood is up and you let loose on two children immediately, sending them to sit on the bench of shame. As you do there is an instantaneous chorus of complaint from both groups of boys. You recognise that chorus. You have heard it before and it usually means that you have called it completely wrong. None-the-less you are determined to break up the party and send the four loudest complainers to the four corners of the yard for their troubles. They move but continue to argue so you unleash the extreme range of your voice with, "SAY ANTOHER WORD AND I WILL TAKE YOUR BREAK AWAY FOREVER!" As the rest of the children disperse a furious delegation emerges and declares that they are off ‘To see the ‘ead'. Turning to return to your duty you see a confused and anxious audience of younger children. They look as though they have lost their innocence, others look anxious, frightened even. What is certain is that they will forever refer to the incident as ‘the day Miss blew a fuse'.
Talking behaviour
- Is there anything wrong in shouting across the playground?
- How can you stop an audience forming to watch an incident play out?
- How do you climb down if you sense that you have made a bad call?
B: Soft and gentle
Without making a fuss you make your way over to the group of boys. By the time you get there someone has been pushed and two boys have grabbed each other. You try to move some of the less involved children away with some non-verbal cues. It works beautifully and some of the group slowly step back. Unfortunately the children at the centre of the action have not even noticed that you have arrived. As you work your way towards the main protagonists a punch is thrown and it kicks off. The children who have stepped back, step in again and children are hurt. You have no idea who started it but no one has any intention of stopping it. You shout but now cannot be heard and it is not until the year 6 teacher and site manager step in that order is restored. Your reputation has not been enhanced by your inability to manage the group. Your pride has also been dinted. As you wade through the paperwork that results from break-time you resolve not to journey alone into the dark corners of the playground again.
Talking behaviour
- When are non-verbal cues most effective in managing behaviour?
- When should you call for help when dealing with a potentially violent incident?
- Is it alright to let someone else deal with the year 6 boys in future?
C. Nasty and Nice
Without calling out you move quickly but calmly over to the group. The volume of your "STOP" surprises you let alone the year 6 boys. Other children stop as well, in fact most of the playground. You move into the centre of the group and stand right next to the two boys who have hold of each other. Immediately dropping your voice you tell the children to ‘let go and step back'. To be fair they had already started letting go when they realised that you were coming to stand next to them. The playground audience cannot hear what is going on and go back to their pursuits. A manky tennis ball is produced from an unlikely if not wholly hygienic place and offered to you. Part of you wants to be disgusted and angry. Most of you just wants to laugh. You go with the latter and the tension of the moment is broken. You ask the two boys in the centre of the action to come and talk to you and ask the rest of the children to line up. There is still some investigation to be done and a restorative repair but the incident has been diffused before it detonated.
Talking behaviour
- When is it right to shout?
- Is it appropriate to use humour to diffuse a potentially violent incident?
- What is the conversation that you have with the two boys now?
Which approach did you use?
A: Your behaviour style
RoboCop
To be in control of a group of children you must first be fully in control of yourself. Rushing in and shouting the odds might feel like the right thing to do but there are dangers lurking. The ripple of anxiety that runs through every child in the playground and the three crying year 1's results in an ugly, unnecessary scene. Send a child for another adult and make a quick plan that doesn't' rely on the force of your temper.
B: Your behaviour style
SilentCop
You need to choose the right strategy for the right moment. Non-verbal cues are highly effective in a classroom environment and for redirecting low-level behaviours. In the playground they can also be great for adjusting behaviour but not for a situation where urgent action is required. Sometimes raising your voice is the right thing to do.
C: Your behaviour style
FairCop
Your shouting is brief, controlled and has a specific purpose. In the gap that it creates you can quickly to use your physical presence to get to the heart of the problem. Sometimes the lion needs to roar.