Don't Fight Fire With Fire

At times, children's emotion's run hot and may erupt into a conflagration, if not a towering inferno. When confronted by fire, our basic instincts direct us to defend ourselves and our natural tendency is to fight back to extinguish the flames. However, our response to children's behavior can prove to be as scorching as the behavior itself and result in increasing the intensity of the situation. Like firefighters, sometimes its best to evacuate all nearby residents, safeguard the neighborhood and let the fire burn itself out. Other times, a response that flows like cool soothing water is best when trying to douse the flames.

Like most other natural disasters, prevention is key to mitigating the effects of fire. Establishing a safe and secure learning environment that provides regularity and routine, as well as provides clear boundaries and expectations will be key to children's stability and success. Taking time to help children develop socially and emotionally will help eliminate episodes of spontaneous combustion or stop small fires from growing into wildfires. Smokey gave us good advice when he said, "Only you can prevent forest fires." What sort of behavioral fire prevention are you conducting with children at home or at your child care program?