Challenging behaviours in children can be really disruptive both at home and in the classroom but managing them and setting better behaviour expectations can improve quality of life, learning and life outcomes in really positive ways.
Managing challenging behaviours is a challenge in itself. Fortunately, we have developed the behaviour Help App to make it easier for teachers, parents and care professionals to manage behaviour.
Challenging behaviours usually occur for a reason and ultimately we need to teach children and support children through what is often perceived wrongly as 'bad behaviour' to transition to 'good behaviour'.
If your child is feeling overwhelmed by their own emotions, perhaps struggling with sensory issues, communication skills or self regulation, these things often manifest as temper tantrums, attention seeking.
Sometimes these issues can also lead to behaviours of concern. Whatever intensity the challenging behaviour presents as, managing it effectively is the key for the positive emotional development and well being of the individual and those around them.
How to Manage Challenging Behaviours in Children
The contexts for managing challenging behaviours are at home, in the classroom at school or community. This is where children learn emotional regulation from a young age and this needs to be reinforced with good behaviour management from parents, teachers and care providers.
Challenging behaviours can act as barriers to social, educational, and personal growth, particularly when they interfere with a child’s ability to engage with their environment, peers, and learning opportunities. Understanding and addressing these behaviours is crucial to unlock their full potential.
The Behaviour Help App promotes the Assess => Manage => Prevent strategy. This is a proven, effective management strategy for dealing with behavioural problems.
We begin by assessing the behaviour of concern, learning as much about it as we can and gathering data. This enables us to define effective strategies for managing the behaviour and last, but not least, the culmination of the assessment and management stages gives us the tools to prevent the behaviour of concern from happening as frequently or at all in the future.
Positive behaviour support plans used to be the reserve of behaviour professionals but now, with help from the behaviour Help App, you can follow these steps and create effective intervention plans yourself.
The app is the first step in developing control and positive strategies for the child's behaviour. The app can support students and adults in the struggle with challenging behaviours.
The App's Assess => Manage => Prevent Strategy
Next let's run through the A-M-P strategy and break it down into those three simple steps. We'll explain how the app can help you achieve each one.
Assess
The Assess Stage focuses on conducting a Functional Behavioural Assessment (FBA), a structured method for collecting detailed information about a child's behaviour. This process includes observing and documenting behavioural patterns and analysing the data to identify factors influencing the behaviours of concern.
From this analysis, potential reasons—or the “functions” of the behaviour—are proposed. The gathered insights provide the team with a deeper understanding of the individual and the underlying causes of their behaviours of concern.
Here's an example from the app of a behaviour data collection form:
The app empowers users to create comprehensive individual profiles by gathering relevant information about the child's behaviour.
It facilitates team collaboration for tracking and logging behavioural data, including frequency, duration, and intensity, as well as recording A-B-C incidents.
A-B-C refers to the Antecedent - behaviour - Consequence framework.
With its advanced analytical tools, the app helps identify behavioural trends, uncover triggers, motivations, and the underlying functions of specific behaviours. Users can effortlessly generate a downloadable functional behavioural assessment report.
Additionally, the app provides access to a real-time dashboard, allowing teams to review and evaluate the effectiveness of the Positive Behaviour Support (PBS) plan by comparing data from before and after intervention implementation.
Manage
The Manage Stage of the positive behaviour support plan provides a structured framework for effectively managing behaviours. It focuses on helping the team gain a deeper understanding of the child's emotional and behavioural needs, identify patterns in their stages of escalation, and apply tailored behaviour management strategies to de-escalate situations safely and with minimal disruption.
To complete the Manage Stage, the following steps are undertaken:
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Number of escalation stages: This identifies the stages the child typically experiences as their emotional intensity increases, such as mild escalation, moderate escalation, extreme escalation, and recovery.
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Description of escalation stages: This outlines the verbal and nonverbal behaviours exhibited at each stage, along with the approximate duration of each stage, to help the team recognise and respond appropriately.
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Stage-specific de-escalation strategies: These provide tailored approaches for addressing each escalation stage early on, enabling the team to safely defuse, redirect, and de-escalate situations. If restrictive practices are authorised, clear guidelines for their implementation are included.
Insights from the Assess and Manage stages contribute to the development of targeted interventions in the Prevent Stage, ensuring a comprehensive and proactive approach to behaviour support.
Here is an example from the app of some escalation stages:
The app allows users to identify the sequence of stages a child goes through during their escalation cycle.
It provides tools to describe the nonverbal and verbal behaviours exhibited by the individual at each stage of escalation. Users can also outline tailored, stage-specific de-escalation strategies to address behaviours effectively.
Additionally, the app enables the creation of a downloadable behaviour management plan, ensuring a structured approach to behaviour support.
Prevent
The Prevent Stage of the positive behaviour support plan focuses on equipping the team with consistent preventative strategies to reduce or eliminate triggers that may provoke or reinforce behaviours of concern across different settings.
It also aims to empower team members to teach and encourage the development of new skills and alternative behaviours that serve the same purpose as the behaviours of concern. This approach enhances the child' participation, quality of life, independence, and growth across various areas of their life positively affecting the desired behaviour.
Here is an example from the app of a smart goal being registered as part of the prevent stage:
The app provides tools to outline strategies related to the environment, interactions, and activities that help minimise or avoid triggers for behaviours of concern.
It also supports the identification of SMART goals designed to teach and reinforce new skills and functionally equivalent replacement behaviours, enabling individuals to express their needs or concerns in more appropriate ways.
Users can collaborate with data collectors to track progress towards these SMART goals, ensuring a team-based approach to behaviour support.
The app facilitates ongoing monitoring to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions and make adjustments as needed. Additionally, it allows users to create a downloadable behaviour prevention plan, offering a structured and actionable framework for proactive support.
Managing Challenging behaviours in Children with Disorders or Conditions
Managing challenging behaviours in children with conditions such as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can present unique and significant challenges.
For children with these conditions, behaviours of concern may occur more frequently, escalate more quickly, and sometimes reach a higher intensity than those seen in other children.
These behaviours can stem from difficulties with sensory processing, communication, or emotional regulation, often making it harder for the child to express their needs or cope with their environment.
The behaviour Help App is specifically designed to support the management of such behaviours. Its structured approach is particularly effective for children with ADHD or ASD because it enables caregivers, teachers, and professionals to:
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Understand Triggers and Functions: The app helps identify the specific environmental, sensory, or interaction-based triggers that may provoke behaviours of concern. By uncovering the underlying reasons for these behaviours, the app facilitates the development of tailored strategies to minimise or avoid these triggers.
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Track and Analyse behaviour Patterns: Children with ADHD or ASD often exhibit behaviours that can vary significantly depending on context. The app allows teams to log and analyse data about the frequency, duration, and intensity of behaviours, as well as the antecedents and consequences, to recognise patterns and trends that might not be immediately apparent.
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Implement Consistent Strategies Across Settings: Consistency is key when managing behaviours in children with these conditions. The app provides a centralised platform for teams to collaborate, ensuring that behaviour management strategies are aligned and consistently applied across home, school, and other environments.
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Teach Replacement behaviours and New Skills: The app enables caregivers to set SMART goals for teaching alternative, contextually appropriate behaviours that serve the same function as the behaviour of concern. For example, a child with ADHD who struggles with impulsive outbursts might be taught strategies for seeking attention in a positive way.
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Monitor Progress and Adapt Plans: The app’s real-time dashboard and progress tracking tools are particularly useful for children with conditions where behaviours can fluctuate over time. Teams can assess the effectiveness of interventions and make evidence-based adjustments to ensure ongoing success.
By providing a structured, data-driven approach to managing challenging behaviours, the behaviour Help App empowers teams to create supportive, positive environments where children with ADHD, ASD, or other conditions can thrive.
It not only helps reduce the occurrence and intensity of behaviours of concern but also fosters the development of skills that enhance the child’s overall quality of life and emotional well-being.
Using the Behaviour Help App to Promote Positive Attention
The Behaviour Help App is a valuable tool for parents, caregivers, and teachers striving to manage challenging behaviours in children by promoting positive attention and reducing reliance on negative attention.
The app's structured approach encourages constructive interactions and provides practical strategies to reinforce desirable behaviours effectively.
Identifying Opportunities for Positive Attention
The app helps users track and analyse patterns in a child's behaviour, highlighting moments where positive attention can be used to reinforce good choices. By logging data about behaviour frequency, triggers, and responses, it becomes easier to identify and celebrate small wins—whether it’s a child calmly asking for help or successfully sharing with a peer.
Providing Clear Guidance on Reinforcement
The app offers tailored strategies to provide positive reinforcement that feels meaningful to the child. Suggestions might include verbal praise, high-fives, or rewarding behaviours with small privileges.
These recommendations help parents and teachers focus on reinforcing positive behaviours rather than reacting to undesirable ones.
Encouraging a Shift Away from Negative Attention
Through its behaviour tracking and analysis tools, the app helps users recognise when negative attention, such as scolding or frustration, might be inadvertently reinforcing challenging behaviours.
By visualising this data, parents and caregivers can reflect on their responses and make conscious efforts to redirect attention towards encouraging positive behaviours instead.
Teaching Replacement Behaviours
One of the most effective ways to provide positive attention is by teaching and reinforcing replacement behaviours—actions that serve the same purpose as challenging behaviours but are more appropriate.
For example, a child seeking attention by shouting can be taught to raise their hand or use a phrase like “Excuse me.” The app supports this process by setting SMART goals and tracking progress towards teaching these replacement skills.
Monitoring Consistency Across Settings
Consistency is key in reinforcing positive behaviours. The app allows teachers, parents, and caregivers to collaborate and align their approaches to providing positive attention.
By sharing data and strategies within the app, everyone involved in the child’s care can work as a team to create a consistent, supportive environment across home, school, and other settings.
Building Confidence in Managing Behaviour
The app provides practical tools and guidance, empowering users to feel confident in their ability to manage behaviours constructively. It helps shift the focus from reacting to challenging behaviours with frustration to proactively encouraging positive interactions.
Feedback and Adjustments
The app provides insights into the effectiveness of the strategies being used. If certain approaches to positive attention aren’t working, users can adjust their tactics and try new strategies, all informed by the data collected within the app.
By guiding users to prioritise positive attention and reduce negative attention, the Behaviour Help App fosters a supportive and encouraging environment for children. This approach not only helps to reduce the frequency and intensity of challenging behaviours but also builds the child’s confidence, emotional regulation skills, and overall well-being.