CARING
Narrative, Challenge Points, Choices and Review

Scene 1 – There’s B-a-a-a-d Behavior Afoot at Eagle Elementary

Mrs. Byron, an experienced Eagle Elementary School teacher, is well respected by her peers and liked by her students. Through her years at Eagle, she has taught grades Kindergarten through Four.

This year, her sixteenth as a member of Eagle Elementary School’s faculty, Mrs. Byron has a student she just cannot seem to reach.

Despite her extensive teaching experience, nothing seems to work with Jay Foxhall. "I've tried everything from Time Out to Positive Reinforcement, nothing helps! I can't recall ever having a child as difficult to manage as Jay," Mrs. Byron reported to Dr. Elaine Rogers.

Jay, a seven-year-old, second grade student at Eagle, repeatedly has demonstrated acting out behaviors both in and outside of Jeannie Byron’s classroom. According to Jeannie, Jay has had a great deal of difficulty getting along with other students and often fails to follow directions.

In particular, she related to Elaine, Jay frequently has grabbed, hit or yelled at other students either to gain their attention or get something that he wanted. On occasion, Jay was extremely aggressive toward other youngsters. Playground monitors reported that Jay punched or kicked his classmates for no apparent reason.

These behaviors resulted in other children rejecting Jay. In fact, Jeannie Byron noted, Jay was generally isolated—apart from other students.

She indicated that Jay’s actions affected other children so much that they had complained to their parents. Several parents recently expressed their concern over Jay's violent behavior.