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Behavioral Considerations Associated with Traumatic Brain Injury Joan Mayfield, Preventing School Failure (page 5 of 6) Page 5 of 6

 

• Many children with right hemisphere injuries may have a lack of insight into the extent of their injuries or may deny their disabilities. Speak to the child in light of his or her cognitive strengths and weaknesses rather than deficits. Help the child verbalize his or her needs and teach to the child’s strongest learning modality (visual, auditory, tactile; Deaton & Waa­land, 1994).

• The child with a TBI may experience poor emotional control. Tasks that the teacher considers to be easy may be diffi­cult for the child, and this may result in an overreaction, such as crying. Whenev­er possible, redirect the child and refocus on another aspect of the assignment. Be sensitive to nonverbal cues by the child when he or she is overwhelmed. Be aware of mood swings, reorient students to pos­itive goals, and provide realistic encour­agement (Deaton & Waaland, 1994; Ylvisaker et al., 1998).
• Should a child become aggressive in the classroom, it is important to realize that this behavior could have been pre­cipitated by a number of events, including fatigue, overstimulation, or frustration. Remove the child from the situation and provide him or her with a quiet place to calm down. One should speak quietly to the student and remain calm. Help him or her state the problem and determine an appropriate coping behavior. If the child is fatigued or overstimulated, provide a quiet rest period. Enlist the help of the school counselor or psychologist to pro­vide ways for the child to learn to self-monitor behaviors and realize when he or she is becoming agitated or irritable. In learning to self-monitor behaviors, the child can remove himself or herself from the situation (Deaton & Waaland, 1994).
• Teachers should maintain communi­cation with parents, and both parties should work together as a team to provide support for the child. Teachers inform the parents of the child’s behavior and progress in learning. Teachers also need to keep parents informed about assign­ment due dates and pertinent information regarding activities in the classroom. Par­ents need to provide the teacher with feedback as to what the child is doing when he or she comes home from school in reference to fatigue, emotional status, and ability to complete work.

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From Preventing School Failure magazine. Heldref Publications. Reprinted with permission. www.heldref.org.

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