Thanking My Lucky School Stars

Riff’s teacher uses a star system to help students in her class learn accountability for their behavior at school. He is five (5) and is in a special education preschool classroom due to global development delays. Since January, his teacher and I have been collaborating on how to minimize some of Riff’s problem behaviors. This collaboration was prompted from work Riff and I have been doing with a behavior therapist at Beaumont’s Center for Human Development in Berkley, Mich.

Last night, Riff’s older sister, Issa, stepped in with her own helpful idea: playing school. She took it upon herself to take a look at Riff’s daily behavior chart, which tracks his progress through the five segments of his day: table time, circle time, snack time, book time and free choice.

Don’t get me wrong. I assess his daily behavior charts as well; and keep in touch with Riff’s teacher on an almost daily basis. But, sometimes, I believe Riff relates better to his big sister. Instead of being the drill sergeant I can be, she pretended to be Riff’s teacher for the evening. I believed Riff viewed this after-school lesson as fun; not work. Hopefully, fun with sister translates into a five-star day today.

Related previous posts …

Defiance Test (kateschannel.wordpress.com)

The Journey Continues (kateschannel.wordpress.com)

A Mom’s Spirited Journey (kateschannel.wordpress.com)

Life on Friday: A Snarl Unleashed (kateschannel.wordpress.com)

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Life on Friday: A Snarl Unleashed

It happened in my kitchen at 7:00 am, today. My daughter’s school bus would be at the corner in one hour. She needed to eat, get dressed and clean up. My son was losing it because he wanted raisins and wouldn’t get them out of the pantry. Our dog, Buddy, needed out and more water.

Before I could reach for my venti-size coffee, a rare but very audible snarl escaped. What was that? It sounded like a low rumble from a lioness or panther. I looked around. Who did it? Our dog, Buddy, was waiting for someone — anyone — to fill his water dish. While impatient, he hadn’t reached hysterical begging, yet. So, I concluded it must me.

How could this happen? It is a sunny, beautiful Friday. After a quick, self-psycho, analysis, I had my answer…simultaneous, impatient demand for my undivided attention. It is number one on my Top 10 Snarl List. My 10 include people, behaviors, and music that are most likely to elicit a snarl or two from me.

Wouldn’t it be helpful to exchange snarl lists with those we love and with strangers? That way the intensity and number of snarls could be reduced and serve as a catalyst for world peace.

BTW, be sure to see the link below on how to snarl properly.

Three Tips for Successful Snarling.