Clear expectations of student behavior accompanied by routine discipline techniques provide a well-managed classroom for young learners to develop the social and emotional skills needed for life.
Discipline in early education corrects misbehavior by teaching preschoolers appropriate ways to conduct themselves as part of a community, adding to the overall management and productivity of the learning environment.
Praising appropriate behaviors leads to increased self-esteem, while disciplining inappropriate behaviors allows students to gain awareness and compassion by learning to differentiate between positive and negative treatment of others.
To decrease the repetition of an inappropriate behavior, a preschooler needs time and consistent adult reminders so that he or she may understand that the consequence received is a direct result of the negative behavior the child has chosen to exhibit.
Positive and preventative approaches to early education discipline include rule repetition, redirection to a new task, distraction from a negative peer situation and conversing with a child about alternative ways to solve problems.