Cracking the Behavior Code: Understanding and Teaching Students with Anxiety

From the Littleton SEPAC

February 24, 2014

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) reports that one in four thirteen- to eighteen- year-olds has had an anxiety disorder in their lifetime. Without intervention, these children are at risk for poor performance, diminished learning, and social/behavior problems in school. Understanding the role anxiety plays in a student’s behavior is crucial, and preventive strategies are key to successful intervention.

Effective behavior plans for these students must avoid the reward- and punishment-based consequences from traditional behavior plans, and focus instead on the use of preventive strategies and on explicitly teaching coping skills, self-monitoring and alternative responses.

Easy to implement preventive tools, strategies and interventions for reducing anxiety, increasing self-regulation, executive functioning and self-monitoring will be discussed.

When:   7:00 - 9:00pm Wednesday, February 26, 2014

Where:  Littleton High School
                    Kiva Room
                    56 King Street, Littleton, MA 01460

This event is free and open to the public.

Presenter

Jessica Minahan, M.Ed., BCBA is a board-certified behavior analyst, special educator and Director of Behavioral Services at NESCA (Neuropsychology & Education Services for Children & Adolescents), as well as a school consultant to clients nationwide (www.jessicaminahan.com).

Minahan has over thirteen years of experience supporting students who exhibit challenging behavior in both urban and suburban public school systems.

She is also the co-author of The Behavior Code: A Practical Guide to Understanding and Teaching the Most Challenging Students, with Dr. Nancy Rappaport (Harvard Education Press, 2012).