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I have a 3yo boy in my class, he'll be four in May...he's been with me over a year.
Some background on him: he lives with his mom, 5yo sister (who is also in care) and mother's live-in boyfriend, who the child identifies as his dad. Child's father was killed in a robbery while the sister was at home. 3yo was a toddler at the time. When children were first enrolled last year, mom was seemed depressed and had a hard time caring for the children...dcb would often show up wearing disgusting pull-ups and was not very clean. On some days, she would drop dcb off and be very friendly and talkative, other days she would simply let the children in and leave. She has seemed happier lately and her boyfriend has become very active in the children's lives.
The first 3 months I had dcb, he was a joy. His sister was as well, and still is. Then dcb began to have violent tantrums...and I mean turn violent at the drop of a hat. He would repeatedly hit the other children and then hit/kick/scratch me when I would attempt redirect him. He would scream for 30 minutes at a time, then stop and go on about his day like nothing ever happened. He follows no directions when I give them. His parents were and still are very supportive of me and if he was having a really bad day, they'd come and pick him up...This has gone on for the last 9 or 10 months or so, he'll have a good couple of weeks out of the blue where he follows directions, no hitting, etc...then he goes back to his usual behavior.
His sudden change of moods and behavior is what concerns me most. He'll hit and scratch me repeatedly, and then cling me to me and refuse to let me put him down the next minute. He'll be playing one minute and throwing the toys and hitting the next. I'll give directions (Put on your coat.) and he'll scream "No!!!" and then out of the corner of my eye, I'll see him putting on his coat, and if I say "thank you for putting on your coat", he'll take it off.
He has to have 100% of my attention all the time, and he'll do anything to get it...climb tables, break things, hurt himself intentionally. A couple weeks ago, he had a tantrum when I had him stop painting because he kept squeezing the paint (black) out of a sponge and letting it run down his arm and onto the floor, after being shown how to use the sponge and asked not to do that. He went ballistic, so I removed him so that he could calm down...he removed all his clothing and urinated on the floor.
I really don't know how to handle him...he falls asleep in my lap every naptime because he CANNOT fall asleep on his cot and he is highly disruptive during nap and is very cranky if he doesnt nap. I love him to death, but he's draining me...
I know it seems like I am constantly posting about children with problems in my class....and thats because I am. My center takes any child...especially children with behavior problems and one's that have been "let go" from other centers for whatever reason. My director likes to think she is helping by doing this, but she doesnt think of the strain it puts on the teachers...I think fully 1/3 of my class has some sort of behavioral issue and some are developmentally delayed. Terming is NOT an option...thats a really a four-letter word for my director, she would keep the child with her all day rather than lose the income...The child she supposedly "termed" earlier this month is still there.
I really value you guys' advice
Some background on him: he lives with his mom, 5yo sister (who is also in care) and mother's live-in boyfriend, who the child identifies as his dad. Child's father was killed in a robbery while the sister was at home. 3yo was a toddler at the time. When children were first enrolled last year, mom was seemed depressed and had a hard time caring for the children...dcb would often show up wearing disgusting pull-ups and was not very clean. On some days, she would drop dcb off and be very friendly and talkative, other days she would simply let the children in and leave. She has seemed happier lately and her boyfriend has become very active in the children's lives.
The first 3 months I had dcb, he was a joy. His sister was as well, and still is. Then dcb began to have violent tantrums...and I mean turn violent at the drop of a hat. He would repeatedly hit the other children and then hit/kick/scratch me when I would attempt redirect him. He would scream for 30 minutes at a time, then stop and go on about his day like nothing ever happened. He follows no directions when I give them. His parents were and still are very supportive of me and if he was having a really bad day, they'd come and pick him up...This has gone on for the last 9 or 10 months or so, he'll have a good couple of weeks out of the blue where he follows directions, no hitting, etc...then he goes back to his usual behavior.
His sudden change of moods and behavior is what concerns me most. He'll hit and scratch me repeatedly, and then cling me to me and refuse to let me put him down the next minute. He'll be playing one minute and throwing the toys and hitting the next. I'll give directions (Put on your coat.) and he'll scream "No!!!" and then out of the corner of my eye, I'll see him putting on his coat, and if I say "thank you for putting on your coat", he'll take it off.
He has to have 100% of my attention all the time, and he'll do anything to get it...climb tables, break things, hurt himself intentionally. A couple weeks ago, he had a tantrum when I had him stop painting because he kept squeezing the paint (black) out of a sponge and letting it run down his arm and onto the floor, after being shown how to use the sponge and asked not to do that. He went ballistic, so I removed him so that he could calm down...he removed all his clothing and urinated on the floor.
I really don't know how to handle him...he falls asleep in my lap every naptime because he CANNOT fall asleep on his cot and he is highly disruptive during nap and is very cranky if he doesnt nap. I love him to death, but he's draining me...
I know it seems like I am constantly posting about children with problems in my class....and thats because I am. My center takes any child...especially children with behavior problems and one's that have been "let go" from other centers for whatever reason. My director likes to think she is helping by doing this, but she doesnt think of the strain it puts on the teachers...I think fully 1/3 of my class has some sort of behavioral issue and some are developmentally delayed. Terming is NOT an option...thats a really a four-letter word for my director, she would keep the child with her all day rather than lose the income...The child she supposedly "termed" earlier this month is still there.
I really value you guys' advice
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