Behaviour Policies

Code of Behaviour

In keeping with our goal of educating young children, the employees of The School House Academy Daycare strives to ensure a safe, positive and respectful learning environment in which respect, and appreciation of all cultures occurs.

Public School Suspension

A child who has been suspended from a Public or Catholic school may continue to attend our Centre unless the Principal believes that the continued presence of the child in the building presents a risk of harm to any person in the school. If it is believed that the child in question is presenting a risk of harm to any other person in the school, the Principal will consult with the Supervisor of the daycare and the parents/guardian of the child. The Principal will confirm the decision by informing the parents, in writing, regarding the child’s continued attendance at our Centre.

Recognition for Appropriate Behaviour

Most of our students exhibit behaviour that reflects self-discipline and respect for individuals in our daycare. This type of appropriate behaviour is expected, appreciated and understand the following are unacceptable methods of behaviour and will not be tolerated:

Physical violence and attacks.
Verbal taunts, name-calling and put-downs.
Threats and intimidation.
Stealing of money and/or possessions.
Ethnically based put-downs.

Consequences for Inappropriate Behaviour

This code clearly defines what acceptable behaviour is. It should be understood that unacceptable behaviour would result in a suitable consequence. Steps indicated in the Challenging Behaviour Policy will be enforced immediately in an effort to defuse the situation.

Parent Code of Conduct

We strive to create a supportive family atmosphere in which the program is an extraction of both home and community. We believe we must all work together in order to meet the needs of our children. Any deliberate, harsh or degrading measures directed towards employees will not be tolerated. We ask that you direct any concerns you may have directly to the Supervisor or Operations Manager, in person or in writing. If we are unable to meet your needs, or our standards do not meet your requirements, we respect your right to choose alternative facilities. Parents who choose to ignore, or not respect, our values will have their childcare services terminated.

Behaviour Management Policy

Our philosophy stresses the importance of teaching children self-discipline and responsibility. We feel that discipline is a learning experience, not a form of punishment. The goal at The School House Daycare is to help the children in our care to remain individuals and have freedom while still encouraging them to allow others around them the same right, through empathy and respect.

We never discourage a child from expressing his/her feelings. Our goal is to teach them to express them in a constructive manner. We want to help the children understand and accept their own feelings, so that they are able to understand the feelings of others.

We provide a learning environment that helps the children to learn honesty and respect for individual differences. They learn to be honest with themselves, to accept failure and its consequences are taught to be learning experiences, most importantly to take responsibility for their actions.

We feel it is best for the teachers at The School House Academy Daycare to give attention for appropriate behaviour, while de-emphasizing the negative behaviour. We strive to set up an inviting playroom that will encourage creative expression and co-operative play. We pay attention to children’s cues of likes and dislikes, wants and needs, and provide them with what they want or wish for whenever possible.

Classrooms are re-arranged when it becomes necessary to provide a different stimulation. The teachers minimize waiting whenever possible, if there is a situation where it is necessary, the teachers provide alternate activities (i.e. singing, books). All classrooms will be tidy, organized and attractive.

Throughout the day it is necessary for the teachers to provide directions to the children, whether it is to or away from an activity, or to be reminded of a certain routine. We follow the following when giving directions:

Make sure you have the child’s attention
Given a choice of two options whenever possible
Give POSITIVE directions
Warn ahead of time before changing activities
Never plead, threaten or strike a child
Invite participation, never force it
Direct a child to a new activity when the current activity is completed
Use a quiet voice as much as possible; speak at the child’s eye level
Encourage a quiet submissive child to express his/her feelings verbally
Give suggestions for words a child may use to describe how they are feeling
Explain any rules in a clear, concise and respectful manner
Reinforce in a positive, impersonal manner, be consistent, firm and fair at all times.
We believe that it is best to set limits to help the children learn self-discipline.
Setting limits gives the children the security of knowing that their emotions will not lead them to do things they will regret.
Knowing an adult will take responsibility for stopping unacceptable behaviour until they can do it themselves.

The School House Academy Daycare teach the Children about safety, care of property, good health habits, and encourage them to be considerate, empathetic and to have respect for others. We allow children to make as many decisions as possible within necessary limits. We explain rules to them in a manner that they can understand and accept.

The School House Academy Daycare try to avoid repetition; we say what we have to say once, after being sure that the children are paying attention. We always try to remain consistent, firm and fair. All rules are enforced in a positive, impersonal manner. Teachers will always understand the reason for a child behaving in a disruptive manner, whether it is from boredom, fear, fatigue, anger, curiosity, insecurity, hunger, jealousy, confusion, sleepiness, shyness, illness, loneliness, hyperactivity, need for toileting, over stimulation, or embarrassment.

Negative behaviour may be evident because they feel the need to try and fight control, this is normal at certain stages of development. Teachers will always consider the situation from the child’s point of view, reassess if the limits are necessary, if they are working, or are they usable? The teacher will respect the child’s wishes if he/she feels the need to be alone with his/her thoughts.

The child will be spoken to briefly by the staff to reassure them that they are available, when the child is ready to talk to them. It is a fact that children can be aggressive at times. At The School House Academy we encourage the children to verbalize their aggression, rather than resort to physical action. However, it is inevitable that some children will resort to physical aggression/violence.

If this situation occurs, the child is spoken to about his/her actions, to help them gain an understanding of the problem. If it involves more than one child, all children are taken aside and spoken to, and encouraged to discuss their feelings and the problem. If a child is too upset over the situation and cannot talk, the teacher will respect their right to be alone in a safe place to calm down. When that child is ready the discussion will take place.

No child is ever allowed to hit a staff member. If a child makes an attempt to hit a teacher, he/she will be restrained gently and will be told in a firm voice one of the following:

“I do not like to be hit”
“That hurts me”
“I will not let you hit me”
“We do not hit when we are angry”

The staff member will remain calm when dealing with any situation, and if necessary enlist the help of another staff member if they are becoming upset or are having difficulty remaining objective to the situation.

Here at The School House Academy Daycare we do not give the children “Time Outs”. We feel that it teaches negative not positive behaviour. The child feels that they have no power or control over the situation. It cannot be cognitively understood, can damage self-esteem by punishing, humiliating and embarrassing them. Time out may increase a child’s anxiety, may require force to have the child sit, and gives a child negative attention. We feel the following are a better alternative to “time out”:

Redirection-send an uncooperative child to a different activity
Request assistance from another staff
Help other children/staff understand the actions of the child
Reinforce positive behaviour; try to ignore the negative behaviour
Sit with the child and explain any consequences
Try to identify any feelings and reflect them back to the child
Encourage the child to talk about their feelings regarding the situation
Give choices and control to the child whenever possible
Find an alternate way to release the extra energy

The following are a list of PROHIBITED disciplinary measures:

Any form of corporal punishment (including: hitting, spanking, pushing, shaking, pinching, biting, grabbing, slapping etc)
Humiliating a child either physically or verbally through sarcasm, taunting, teasing, degradation, belittling
Locking up or confining a child in any room, a child must NEVER be placed alone in a room
Depriving a child of basic needs for food, clothing, shelter, and bedding. Food can never be used as a punishment or threat
Punishing or reprimanding a child in any way for failing to use the toilet
Punishing in any way for staying awake at rest time

Any person that witnesses mistreatment of any child must contact the Supervisor of the Daycare Immediately. This is a legal responsibility.

Any person working with the children will be monitored on a weekly basis for Behaviour Guidance techniques, all documentation will be kept for a period of two years. Any non-compliance with the above policy will be brought to the staff’s attention immediately. A review of Staff Behaviour Management practices and this policy will be conducted annually. Staff will sign that they have read and understood the Behaviour Management Policy and agree to abide by it.

Testing is a natural part of a child’s life. Children test their environment; they test their peers and teachers in an attempt to discover the limitations set by each. A child’s curiosity will often cause her/him to push the set limitations. When this type of testing occurs, the teacher will attempt to redirect the child’s action.

This behaviour management technique may diffuse any in appropriate actions. However, there may be times when a child needs to be removed from the situation and be given a cool down period. This time is intended to allow the child to relax and think through her/his actions. When the child feels ready, the

Teacher will return and together they will discuss the situation and try to identify ways to avoid a similar incident from occurring in the future.

Challenging Behaviour

When a child’s behaviour becomes challenging, not only for her/himself, but also for the other children in our care it becomes a concern to parents, childcare employees and all personnel involved. In an effort to deal with these types of behaviours, the following procedures will take place:

1.) Incidents of behaviour difficulties will be observed and documented as well as the methods used to correct the problem. Parents will be made aware of concerns verbally or in writing.

2.) Employees will discuss and plan consistent strategies.

3.) A meeting with the child’s parent, classroom employees and Supervisor will be arranged. Permission to contact an outside agency for assistance and assessment may be sought if deemed appropriate. A “Release of Information” form should be signed at this time. Written summaries of all further actions will be kept on file and copy given to the parent.

4.) The Supervisor will make contact with outside agencies stating specific concerns and the urgency of the situation.

5.) The outside agency will visit and consult. Recommendations will be made for the child/employees /family to try to resolve the situation. Time limits for improvement will be set.

6.) If the behaviour persists, the consultant and the Supervisor will meet with the parents, to discuss alternative settings that would be more appropriate for the child.

7.) The School House Academy Daycare will give written notification to the parents clearly setting out the time frame for improvement.

8.) The above procedure is based on the full co-operation of the parents in seeking a solution to the problem exhibited by the child. If the parent refuses to cooperate or will not understand the efforts of the daycare to seek a solution, The School House Academy Daycare will have no alternative but to give a notice of “withdrawal of services”.

The School House Daycare Guidelines for De-escalating Volatile Situations

It is understood that in some extreme situations (wherein a child is endangering her/himself or others) employees may find themselves having to respond to a crisis situation using physical guidance as a method to defuse and/or de-escalate a volatile situation. Physical restraint is only used in situations where a child is in imminent danger of compromising the safety of themselves or others in the program.

It is very important to communicate strategies to support the children who have observed the disruptive situation and also to give support to the child and family who have been involved in the situation. If any staff member from The School House Daycare uses physical guidance in this type of situation the following steps must be taken:

There will always be two employees present in the same room as the child, one employees using the physical guidance and the second employee as an observer and/or relief. If at all possible, all other children will be removed from the situation. Children may move briefly to the hallway or another room, remaining supervised at all times. Once the child has de-escalated from the situation she/he will be supportively reintroduced into the program. Employees will remain with the child until she/he is settled in to an activity or task.

Once the situation has been resolved, the employee that used physical guidance with the child will document the incident, sign the document and submit it to the Centre Supervisor. The Supervisor will then contact the Children’s Services Serious Occurrence line at 416-397-7359 to report the incident. In discussion with the Children’s Services Consultant, the situation will be reported either as an incident or as a serious occurrence depending on the circumstances surrounding the situation.

The Supervisor and employees will meet with the child’s parents to discuss the incident and determine the strategies that will be utilized should the child encounter a similar situation. The parents will sign off on both the incident report and the strategies.

If a child alleges they have been injured, the Centre must comply with the Child Abuse Reporting Policy. The Supervisor and employees will keep the parent up-to-date on the child’s progress using weekly documentation notes along with a review of the strategies. These notes will be signed and copied for both parents and Supervisor.

If the child continues to experience challenging behaviour then The School House will call in a Specialized Consultation Service (parental consent is required). The consultant, family and employees will devise specific strategies and interventions, including a regular communication plan with the parents to review the child’s progress. This will assist in making the child’s placement a successful one.

The above procedure is based on the full co-operation of the parents in seeking a solution to the problem exhibited by the child. If the parent refuses to co-operate, or will not understand the efforts of the daycare to seek a solution, then The School House will have no alternative but to give notice of “withdrawal of services”.