Gifted Manipulators

Children often want to hide their problems. They are usually excellent at creating a camouflage to protect themselves from potential hurt and damage to their self esteem.

These behaviours can be seen as smoke screens …moving the teacher’s focus and awareness from the child’s difficulties to the masking behaviour. This uses the teacher’s energy and focus simply to manage the behaviour and thus avoiding the underlying problems.

A teacher needs to identify the child’s difficulty or difficulties. All behaviour is understandable. All behaviour can be changed.

• The Super Hero: That’s easy. Everyone knows that. Dismissive.
• The Lame Duck: Helpless. Doesn’t know what to do. Doesn’t understand.
• The Invisible Man: No eye contact. Stands or sits apart. Whispers. Nobody, including the teacher, gets to know him.
• The Clown: Everything is funny. Causes a “riot” to distract.
• The Victim: Everyone picks on me. It’s not fair. Poor me.
• The Escape Artist: Shut down. Don’t care. Won’t try.
• The Wet Blanket: Boring. Puts teacher on defensive.
• The Busy Britches: I’ll do it later. Does everything but what the teacher wants.
• The Helper: Overly helpful. A pleaser.
• The Mocker: Everything sucks. This is dumb.
• The Cool Dude: I’m only interested in doing what I can do well. I’m cool.
• The Perfectionist: Intolerant of others. Inflexible.
• The Hypochondriac: Sore stomach, headaches, absences. Wants special privileges.
• The Bully: Rather be bad than dumb. Upsets others.
• The Dreamer: Fantasy dweller. Lives in another world. Doesn’t listen.