Carmel Caterpillars Preschool

Carmel Caterpillars Preschool

Biting Policy

This policy represents the agreed principles for behaviour and discipline throughout Carmel Caterpillars Preschool. All staff have agreed to this policy. This policy aims to help children grow in a safe and secure environment, and to become positive ,responsible and increasingly independent members of our Preschool.

At Carmel Caterpillars Preschool we reward good behaviour, as we believe this will develop kindness and cooperation.

Carmel Caterpillars may work alongside outside agencies with individual children and their families to support a child’s behaviour.

Statement

Biting is a common behaviour among children and can be a concern for parents, carers and staff. Biting can often be painful and frightening for the child who has been bitten. Biting happens for many reasons with different children and under different circumstances. This is part of some children’s development and can be triggered when they do not yet have the words to communicate their anger, frustration or needs. At Carmel Caterpillars Preschool we follow our positive behaviour policy to promote positive behaviour at all times.

Aim

We aim to act quickly and efficiently when dealing with any case of biting.

The Preschool aims to make sure to have adequate resources and staff who recognise when children need more stimulation and quite times.

We will treat each incident with care and patience, offering comfort firstly to the child that has been bitten, and will help children to manage their feelings and talk about them, to help issues and promote understanding.

Procedure

In the event of a biting incident:

1)     The child who has been bitten will be the priority and will be comforted and checked for injury. A cold compress will applied to the bite area.

2)     The staff member who witnessed the incident will complete an accident form for the child that has been bitten. A senior member of staff will call both parents/carers to inform them of the incident. The accident form will be signed by parent/carer when picking up at the end of the day.

3)     The child who has bitten will have their behaviour managed by a member of staff and the consequences of this behaviour should be explained in a way which is appropriate to the child’s age and stage of development.

4)     If a child continues to bite, observations will be carried out to try and distinguish a cause. Meeting will be held with the child’s parents/carers to develop strategies to prevent the biting behaviour. Parents will be reassured that it is part of a child’s development and not made to feel that it is their fault. However, when biting is continual after intervention and strategies in place further action will be taken at managements discretion, after a risk assessment has been carried out.

How we will support this policy

• We should acknowledge that biting incidents can cause parents a great deal of distress and worry, and we need to be sensitive and supportive at all times.
• We will work in partnership with parents/carers for a successful behaviour management strategy.
• We should involve parents/carers every step of the way and explain that this should be implemented in the home as well as Preschool.
• We should be aware that there are a range of triggers which can cause children to bite and should work as a team to identify these and reduce them.
• Potential triggers can be:

Teething, cause and effect, attention, independence, frustration, exploration, environment and not having their needs met.                                                                    All these triggers should be considered-it could be one of these factors or a combination of them.

Potential Strategies to support management of biting incidents

• We may need to increase the supervision of a child who is biting: this does not necessarily mean 1:1. It could be during particular times of the day, or by simply reducing the number of large group activities.
• We need to make sure that the child who is biting receives encouragement when displaying positive behaviour, and when appropriate, avoids excessive attention following an incident.
• We should evaluate the routine and judge whether it is meeting the needs of the child. We will make sure we have a good quality routine and provide experiences and activities both indoors and outdoors.
• We should plan activities that release frustration such as physical outdoor play and malleable experiences.
• We should provide cosy areas for the children to relax in and activities which release tension such as splashing in water, digging in sand and using sensory equipment.

In extreme cases when the biting incidents reoccur, even after the strategies and interventions have been put in place and  exhausted, we may feel it necessary to suspend  the child’s place for a period of time and reduce hours attending Preschool.

Signed of behalf of Carmel Caterpillars Preschool:

Chairperson