• Rewarding good behaviour:-

• Rewards are constructive and encourage the children to make an effort to behave;

• Rewards will usually be in the form of praise, extra attention, a reward chart or a privilege such as having their favourite story read at story time.

• Punishment can be destructive and impacts negatively on the child’s self-confidence, this does not mean that there are no consequences for unwanted behaviour, just that the consequences will be relevant to the behavior eg. helping to comfort a child they have hurt, helping to repair an item they have broken, not being allowed to play with an item they are mistreating, being put on a walking harness (if age appropriate) if they run off when out walking. Rarely a cooling off period may be implemented. This involves removing a child from an activity and allowing them to relax/calm down. I will never completely segregate a child from the playing area.

• I try to set a good example with regards to manners and safety. Children will do as we do rather than as we say.

• I aim to set realistic limits according to the age and understanding of each child.

• I try to encourage rather than order children to do the right thing.

• I try to be consistent, e.g. saying no and meaning no. Children need to know where the limits and boundaries are, it helps them to feel secure.

• Occasionally if a particular toy is causing arguments, it will be taken away for a while to distract the children from the argument.