Gossiping staff in early childhood programs models destructive behavior and harms families' trust in the professionalism of the program. Bruno identifies some of the causes and motives for gossip and examines its occurrence in early care and education settings. She offers step-by-step strategies to help supervisors set and enact policies that…

Children with only months of life experience and brain development are just beginning to learn social problem solving. No wonder young children frequently make mistakes! Teachers tend to complain about tattling more than any other behavior. To many teachers, tattling is irksome, but there is more to this behavior than meets the eye. In this…

For may early childhood teachers, angry voices of children are heard all too often. When children focus on protecting themselves and surviving conflicts, they miss out on the joys and opportunities the early childhood program has to offer. Without the ability to solve problems in their interactions with others, children are not able to peacefully…

Suggests actions that teachers can take to challenge the use of violence by children. Actions include providing early intervention and teaching specific skills to help children resolve conflicts. Discusses adaptation to children's developmental levels and creation of classroom contexts supportive of nonviolence. (LB)

Notes innovation and creativity as an alternative to violent response to anger or frustration. Discusses prerequisites for success of social problem approach to conflict resolution and presents six specific steps to this approach and its benefits for both teacher and children. (HTH)

Presents a model for using guidance in mild and serious conflict situations in the preschool classroom. Describes how classic conflict management techniques are used to make both parties equal contributors to a peaceful settlement through mediation, including guidance talks, self-removal, and class meetings. Discusses use of comprehensive guidance…

Discusses the Teacher Behavior Continuum (TBC), which is a model of strategies for teachers to use in interacting with children. Strategies range from looking at children's behavior to physical intervention. Ways to use the TBC in dealing with victims in children's disputes and children's tattling are suggested. (LB)