Working in speech therapy for toddlers, one of the biggest questions I get from parents (and even other therapists) is what to do about toddler behaviors. Whether a parent is feeling overwhelmed with their little ones' outbursts and has no idea how to help them or a therapist doesn’t understand why the toddlers seem to keep throwing things (including tantrums) in their sessions… at some point, we all need a little guidance. And today, that’s exactly what we are going to talk about- helping parents (and therapists) understand that behaviors are often a form of communication. There are multiple layers to behaviors and today I want to give you some tools that you can start implementing today that will help both you and parents.
Understanding that behaviors are a form of communication is a fundamental idea in early intervention, and we need to help parents understand it. Toddlers may not have the words yet, but they still communicate with us.
Behaviors have four functions: social/seeking attention, escape or avoid, seeking access, or sensory seeking. Are they trying to get my attention? Do they want out of a situation or event? Are they looking to gain access to something? Or are they trying to tell me something doesn’t feel right? When we understand the why behind a behavior, we can better understand, respond, and support a child.
For many parents, challenging behaviors are incredibly frustrating. However, once we help them see that these behaviors are their child’s way of talking to them, the entire conversation shifts.
That shift from seeing behavior as ‘bad’ to seeing it as an attempt at communication is powerful. It reduces frustration and opens the door to understanding.
And, it’s not just parents that should have this shift. Sometimes, as clinicians, we ourselves must remember that not everything is as it seems. When we have a little one on our caseload that appears to be experiencing difficulties, we have to ask ourselves: why?
Before we can help parents address or respond to their child’s behaviors, we need to guide them in understanding what the behavior is. Often, parents see behavior like hitting, screaming, or shutting down, but they don’t always connect it to what their child might be trying to communicate.
In this episode, we discuss 4 topics to consider when understanding a toddler's behavior. Observe the behavior in context Take note of what is going on surrounding the behavior Identify the function of the behaviors Keep an open dialogue with parents and caregivers about the behaviors
When choosing strategies, it’s important to include parent and caregiver input. We want to use strategies that will be beneficial and easily incorporated into their routine.
Introduce communication techniques such as functional words (power words) like "help", "more" "all-done" Use visual aides to provide concrete examples to abstract ideas. Visual communication schedules, "first/then" visuals, etc.
When we help parents see behavior as communication, we give them a new way to connect with their child. We want to help them identify the function of the behaviors, observe and take data on what is going on around the behaviors, and implement strategies to encourage development and more functional communication.
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