Are you looking for ways to teach kids to control their temper? If so, keep reading.
1. Give the student positive feedback that indicates they are successful, essential, respected, etc.
2. Give the student chances for social and academic success.
3. Stop annoying or anxiety-producing situations from happening (e.g., give the student tasks only on their capacity and ability level, give the student only the number of tasks that can be tolerated in one sitting, lessen social interactions that encourage the student to become physically abusive, etc.).
4. Teach the student ways to gain self-control (e.g., count to 10, walk away, talk with someone, etc.).
5. Establish an excellent example for the student by handling situations that may be upsetting in a socially acceptable way.
6. Take the student away from the learning experience until they can demonstrate self-control.
7. Do not let the student have their way when they get angry.
8. Consider consulting with a mental health caregiver about the student’s failure to control their anger.
9. Get the student to ask for help when they need it.
10. Get the student to question any directions, explanations, or instructions they do not understand.
11. Urge the student to remove himself/herself from a situation when they need to gain self-control.
12. Urge the student to ask himself/herself qu estions to avoid impulsive behavior (e.g., “What should I be doing?” “How do I want to be perceived?”).
13. Teach the student to verbalize their feelings before losing control (e.g., “I’m getting tired of waiting.” “I’m getting bored standing here.”).
14. Teach the student to verbalize their feelings when they become frustrated (e.g., “I’m getting frustrated with this project.” “I’m feeling pressured to get this task accomplished.”).
15. Dissuade the student from engaging in those learning activities that cause them to become easily angered, annoyed, or upset.
16. Urge the student to take part in quiet, calming learning activities (e.g., listen to music, read, etc.) when feeling frustrated.
17. Place the student in learning activities in which they can be successful and which will help them feel excellent about themselves. Repeated failures result in frustration and impatience.
18. Let the student take part in mild exercise such as walking upstairs/downstairs, taking a message to the office, etc., when they are feeling frustrated.
19. Urge the student to avoid ingesting any substance (e.g., drugs, alcohol, cold remedies, etc.) that might further alter their capacity and ability to keep self-control.
20. Do not assume the student is being treated nicely by others. Peers may be stimulating unacceptable behavior.
21. Consider using a classroom management app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.
22. Consider using an adaptive behavior management app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.
23. Consider using Alexa to help the student learn to behave appropriately. Click here to read an article that we wrote on the subject.
24. Click here to learn about six bonus strategies for challenging problem behaviors and mastering classroom management.
