Positive Relationships: Behaviour - Wild things?

We have a group of boys in our foundation stage unit who spend most of their time running around shouting, throwing things and being generally disruptive. They are the older boys, but their behaviour influences the younger children. They are not accessing all of the areas of learning as they are unwilling to sit and concentrate. We feel we are constantly on patrol.

I think that you have painted a picture that some other readers will recognise. There are several issues here that are worth unpicking in order to shed light on this behaviour.

A good starting point is to consider some of the assumptions made about boys in general. Over the past few years, I have read and heard a lot of things about what boys are like. My favourite expression is 'he's a real boy'. By implication, there are imposters who masquerade as boys.

Being serious though, many of the usually negative statements made about boys would be considered discriminatory if applied to an ethnic group. I wonder whether this negative stereotyping has led to the lowering of expectations for boys' achievements and behaviour.

It also means certain activities or resources are sometimes disregarded, as there is an assumption that boys won't be interested. This flies in the face of common sense as, of course, while sharing a gender, there are bound to be differences between individual boys, as any parent with more than one will attest.

Having said this, I do recognise that children, especially from three years old, are likely to be exploring gender concepts and this may affect some boys' play and activity preferences. We do need to be mindful of this, but not necessarily restricted by it, as otherwise we can close down opportunities for learning.

So going back to your question, I would suggest that, alongside some of the strategies that you might put in place, thought is given to the underlying attitudes that adults share towards boys.

DETECTIVE WORK

When looking at many types of behaviour, it is worth doing a little bit of detective work. Most behaviours have a cause, so it is worth watching exactly what these boys are doing. Look at their levels of communication and planning, and also think about the sensations they are gaining during their play. This may be quite revealing. Sometimes apparently random and boisterous play is actually quite complex and imaginative.

Other times, it may be that children are resorting to the more boisterous play because the environment or the activities on offer are in some way deficient. Only the other day, I spotted a couple of children running around with trowels. A dangerous activity requiring adult intervention? Yes, but one that was predictable given the absence of a suitable digging area.

CHALLENGE

Once you have looked at these boys' behaviours, think also about how much inherent challenge is provided in your setting. You mention these boys are the older ones. Could they have come to the point where they have 'been there and got the T-shirt' and so are creating their own thrills?

Think about what's new in terms of equipment, resources and activities. I suspect if you counted the number of hours these children have spent in your provision, assuming they came in as three-year-olds and are now five, they may well have clocked up more than a thousand hours.

If you feel that this could be the case, think about providing 'grown-up' activities for these children, such as making bread, putting batteries into toys and torches or even building a camp fire. These types of adult-led activity tend to generate plenty of interest, can be linked to several areas of learning and are also examples of active learning.

THRILLS AND SPILLS

Alongside challenge and stimulation, you might also find when observing this group's activity that there is an element of 'thrill' within their play. Thrill can come from taking risks, being chased or, indeed, anything that pleasurably raises the heart rate. Think about the activities on offer in your setting. Do you plan games and activities that will give children an adrenalin rush that comes from being chased or hiding? If not, I suspect that you are missing a trick.

Try planning games such as 'What's the time, Mr Wolf?', 'Hide and Seek' or circle games requiring children to run when they hear their name. As well as meeting a need in most children, you are also providing physical activity. The latest guidance is that children, once mobile, should have three hours a day of physical activity with minimal periods of sitting. (Download the latest guidelines by visiting www.dh.gov.uk and typing in 'Start active stay active'.)

GANGING TOGETHER

Another direction worth taking is to consider how much positive adult attention is on offer. Make a simple chart and see how much key person time each of these boys is receiving. Some of these boys might well be 'cuddly boys' whose parents report that they like nothing better than to snuggle in with them.

If this is the case, think about whether they have this type of relationship with their key person. In my experience, older children who are not getting enough positive and warm interactions with adults can instead turn to each other to meet these needs, creating almost little gangs. Whilst it is great to see close friendships between children, these should complement rather than replace the adult-child relationships.

Finally, if you are a key person to some boys, think about how much you really know about their interests. Time, perhaps, to watch an episode of Spiderman or read up on dolphins or knitting. Who knows?

A FEW TIPS

• Observe play. Work out what children are gaining from it. If you feel that play is inappropriate, think about what else, giving similar sensations or challenge, is on offer.

• Consider the quality of adult-led activities. Are they dynamic, challenging and enjoyable?

• What frequency of interaction and adult attention is there?

• Think about how boys are viewed within the setting.

• Find out from parents the boys' interests and what kind of play the boys enjoy at home.