Live Interactive Chat
Director, Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning, University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
- Biography
- Resources
- Questions & Answers (Transcript)
Anger is a feeling, and aggression is a behavior. Children exhibit anger in ways other than through aggression. For example, they may withdraw from interactions with other children or adults, or they may cry. In addition, children demonstrate aggression for a variety of reasons other than anger. They may be aggressive because they want a toy another child has, they may want attention, or they may want to play. Dealing with these behaviors requires a responsive process that includes understanding why children exhibit the behavior, teaching children more appropriate ways to communicate, and using a team approach. Questions answered in this Chat include, “What kinds of activities are effective in helping angry children to calm down?” “I have a child in my day care who goes from one bad behavior to another. He would bite, then hit. What can I do?” “Is there any way to know whether a child is simply aggressive or is exhibiting the same hitting behavior he or she is getting from a parent at home?” “Are there certain kinds of aggressive behavior that signal a need to solicit outside help from a specialist?”
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