Self-Regulation/Compliance

Self-Regulation/Compliance

Anger management

Bubble blowing technique:  Use bubbles and play the game with the child - first modeling how to deep breathe to get the biggest bubble.  This is illustrated on the video shows an example).  Competitions makes the child put more into the game.  The child is given the bubbles to take home and practice before bedtime and/or homework.  (From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Operation: Play the commercial game with use of deep breathing illustrated by the counselor.  The child will  learn how this coping mechanism can help the child use self-control to react or deal with situations.  The counselor also makes errors while playing to show it as a coping model. (From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Communicating Anger With Words: (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 147)
Reproducible    "Poster Art" Activity Sheet
            
Controlling One's Anger:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 150)
Reproducible    "What Should You Do?" activity sheet 

Recognizing Words That Spark Anger:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 121)
Reproducible    "Trigger Words and Personal Identity" Activity Sheet

Recognizing Another's Anger:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 164)
Reproducible    "Understanding Another Person's Anger" Activity Sheet   

Appropriate behavior
Network News
This technique requires the use of a video camera, table an two chairs, telephone and pieces of paper.  Have the child make up the name of the Network Program.  The counselor runs the news program with the client as the expert guest.  The counselor has the imaginary people who call in to the expert ask questions that are directly related to the child�s own issues (fear, rejection, school failure, etc.).  The age of the child who the �parents� call in about should be at least one year younger than the child.  The therapist is the caller by changing his or her own voice and looking away from the child.  (Done with a tape recorder and microphone and called (Radio News Nework)
(From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Cooperation

Cooperation Game I:
-hit balloon back and forth 20 times (Shapiro changed the rules by adapting to 10 times help the kids be successful.
-Games rehearse desired behavior
(Video Training Program:  Self-Control Techniques in Child Psychotherapy, Shapiro, 1995)

Cooperation Game II: Instruct students to follow directions to do this activity
-shut eyes
-Shake hands
-Turn around until he says stop
-Hold out hands and find each others hands (adapt to insure success)
(Video Training Program:  Self-Control Techniques in Child Psychotherapy, Shapiro, 1995)

Compromise
Negotiating (Lesson 65): (Hanken & Kennedy, 1998, Getting to Know You, p 196, lessons for grades 1-3 and 4-6)
Negotiating with Others-Skill #118:  (Teaching Social Skills to Youth, 1992, p 118)

Feelings

Feeling Word Game:
This technique uses four pieces of copy paper, cut in half (4�-6�), a marker and bingo chips.  This technique is illustrated in more detail in the video.  It is used to help the children get in touch with the words that will help them express their inner feelings and thoughts.
(From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

The Calming Book: children make a book of calming images to help them when they are upset or anxious. (Shapiro, 2003, The Secret Language of Children, p. 230)

Feeling Charades: A game to help children practice expressing their feelings without using words. (Shapiro, 2003, The Secret Language of Children, p. 269)

Color Your Day: Helps children express and understand their feelings by using colors to represent different emotions. (Shapiro, 2003, The Secret Language of Children, p. 227)

Feelings Picture Book: Shows parents how to make a picture book to teach young children how to recognize the feelings of others (Shapiro, 2003, The Secret Language of Children, p. 248)

Feelings X-Ray Machine: Helps children reveal and explore their feelings.
(Shapiro, 2003, The Secret Language of Children, p. 227)

Four Feelings Picture: Helps Children Explore Basic Feelings. (Shapiro, 2003, The Secret Language of Children, p. 212)

Emotional Regulation-  Catharsis
White Board Targets:  Using dart guns (Nerf are recommended) with white board targets.  Draw a regular bull's eye target on the board with number (100, 50, 30, 20) or any other type of target.  Have the child shoot at the target with saying things that they hate ("I hate homework",_ or things that they are scared of ("I am afraid of monsters."), and then shoot.  The therapist models this first, and then the child follows.  The person with the most points wins.  It is important for the therapist to shoot as poorly as the child so that he/she will want to continue the game.  As material releases from the child, the counselor can incorporate it in the play discussion.  (From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Feeling Word Charts:  Using dart guns to shoot at the feeling words.  When the dart lands on a word, the child tells of a time she/he felt that way.  Once again the therapist models this first so that the child feels less threatened.(From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Not So Scary Things is a commercial game Kaduson recommends using with 4-7 year old children to help them appropriately express fears and learn coping mechanisms.  (From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Identify Your Feelings (Lesson 30)
Showing Your Feelings (Lesson 31)
Recognizing Another's Feelings (Lesson 32)
Showing Concerns for Another's Feelings (Lesson 33)
Seven Common Emotions (Lesson 34)
Overcoming Boredom (Lesson 35)
Handling Embarrassment (Lesson 40)
Dealing with Being Excluded (Lesson 39)
Handling Feelings of Failure (Lesson 41)
Jealousy-Wanting Others Possessions (Lesson 46)

(all from Hanken & Kennedy, 1998, Getting to Know You, p 105-151, lessons for grades 1-3 and 4-6)

Frustrated (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 291)
Disappointed, Hopeful (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 331)
Proud, Ashamed  (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 345)
Guilty  (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 345)
Curious, Interested, Bored  (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 415)
Confused, Worried, Sure  (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 443)
Nervous or Anxious, Calm or Relaxed (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 469)
Shy, Lonely (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p.491)
Embarrassed, Humiliated (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 525)
Observing Emotional Clues in Other People (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 555 )
Observing Emotional Clues in Ourselves (Paths Curriculum, Kusche & Greenberg, 1994, p. 601)

Following School and Classroom rules

Simon (Someone) Says: a variation on the traditional game that can help children learn to control their movements by listening intently.  Can be played in small groups or individually.  Focus the game around a theme which encompasses a positive series of activities with directions such as "SOMEONE SAYS put away your toys" or "SOMEONE SAYS make the bed.  Rig the first game so that the child will win and in the process complete the activities you want him/her to do.  Shorten the game for kids with short attention spans.  The child will build up to paying more attention and performing more complex activities.  Help the child learn to listen and think about what he or she heard by giving him/her cues (nods, winks, pantomime), by emphasizing certain words, and by making it very clear what you REALLY expect him or her to do.  Play the game for 10 consecutive days.  Each time make the game just a little different.  (Games to Grow On, Shapiro, 1981 p 58).

Say it with signs:  use sign language as a communication tool to provide a non-disruptive reminder to impulsive or overactive children:
Come:  with your index fingers out, roll your hands towards your body
Quiet:  Begin with your finger on your lips, then move both hands down and out from your mouth
Good:  Place the tips of your fingers on your chin and move your hand out
Look:  Point to your eyes, then twist your hand and point out.
Sit:  Bring the right middle and index fingers down to the same fingers of the left hand.
Yes:  Move your fist up and down in front of you
Try:  Shape both hands as shown and move them down and out from the chest
Please:  Rotate your palm in a circle on your chest
No:  Bring your index and middle finger together in one motion to your thumb
Stop:  Chop your right hand into the palm of your left. 
(Games to Grow On, Shapiro, 1981 p 60)
 
The Secret Treasure Map Game:  introduces the child to map reading as a new way of following an adult's directions.  Basic rules are simple:  adult hides toys at different places in a room, and the child must find them by following the arrows on the treasure map. Can be used to help teach complex cognitive skills such as the ability to translate abstract direction into concrete actions, the ability to follow a sequence of directions and the ability to incorporate directions into problems that must be solved, and the ability to see direction as a set of interlocking steps.

Game 1:  Understanding that maps represent the real world.  Draw a map of a room that the child is familiar with.  Draw in prominent features such as furniture, doors, and windows and explain to the child that this is a "picture" of the room showing where everything in it is located.  Go into the room and show him/her where you both are located and how everything in the room corresponds to the pictures on the map.  Then say, "See these arrows?  They show you where small toys are located.  See the number 1?  That means it is the first place to look.  The arrow points behind the chair.  Now let's go and see what is there.  (Take the child behind the chair and find the small surprise that you had previously hidden.)  Now see if you can find the four other toys.  Follow the arrows, and you'll find them."  If the child has difficulty, you may wish to give him some hints the first time you play the game, such as saying "warm" when he/she is close  to prize and "cold" when he or she is not.

Game 2  Following a sequence of directions:  Using the same type of map as in Game 1, hide five new surprises in different places.  Then photocopy four extra maps, number them 1 through 5, and mark where to find only one prize on each map.  Map 1 should show where to find prize 1, map 2 should show where to find prize 2, and so a new map each time he/she finds a new map.  Say, "There are five prizes in this room.  Each time you find a prize, you will also find a map showing you where the next prize is.  You must go in the same order as the numbers or you may not find all the prizes."

Game 3 Using directions in combination with other problems:  Hide only one prize in the room, but give the child a map which shows five arrows.  Then give him a math problem to do, one that you know he/she can solve without too much difficulty.  The answer to the math problem should be either 1, ,2 ,3 ,4 , or 5, and that number will indicate which number arrow points to the prize.  The child may wish to take a trial-and-error approach and look where each of the five arrows points, but encourage him/her toward the more efficient method of simply solving the problem to show him/her exactly where the prize is.

Game 4 Seeing directions as a series of interlocking steps:  For this game, you must hide a prize in a different room from that in which you hide the clues.  The clues must be fitted together in order to tell the child where the prize is hidden.  The clues might be different words (for example, the prize is in th cookie jar) or if the child can't read, take a photograph of the area of the room where the prize is hidden and paste a star or dot exactly where the prize is hidden.  Then cut the photograph into four or five pieces like a jigsaw puzzle and put each piece into an envelope.  Mark the envelopes with the same numbers as the arrows on the map, and hide them around the room.  When the child finds all the clues (either words or parts of a picture) he/she can put them together to find the treasure.
Have the child play the same game several times until he/she can do it with ease.  Small toys make good prizes and really motivate the child to try; however, you can also use chips or token which can be cashed in for something else the child wants.  (Games to Grow On, Shapiro, 1981 p 62-65)

Sorting Out Rules: The purpose of this game is to identify the rules that are most important to the child and the adults around him to be able to assign priorities to them. Write down on a sheet of paper ten rules that the child knows he should follow. Then discuss which of these rules are really important and which are more trivial. Number the rules from 1 to 10 giving the most important rules the lowest numbers and the least important rules the highest numbers.

Materials needed: ten rules cards made from 5 x 8 index cards.

1. Take ten 5x8 cards and draw a line down the center of each one to divide it in half.
2. On each card, write out in clear simple language one rules from the list you just compiled.
3. Turn the card over and draw a line down the center of the back too.
4. In pencil write the priority number of each rule, from the list you made, on the back right half of each card.
5. Because some of the children whom you may be working with do not read very well, it is important t give them other ways to remember the rules. Simple line drawings or clip art can be used to illustrate each principle involved in each rule.
6. Another approach is to take an instant picture of the child as he/she pretends to break the rule and mount the picture on the 5x8 card. You will probably need to use some props to make it clear in the picture which rule you are demonstrating.

Playing the game:

Put the games in order from the most important to the least important.

Sorting Games

1. One rule to remember game: Shuffle the ten cards and have the child pick out the highest-priority rule which he/she should be working on.

2. The Big Three Rules: Take two coffee cans, paint them, and label one "Big Three" and the other "Little Seven" Shuffle the cards, and have the child put cards 1 to 3 in the Big Three can and the other cards in the Little Seven can, looking only at the front of the cards.

3. Rules that make you flip:

The Big Rule Caper

1. Beginning with rule 1, discuss with the child what happens when each rule is broken and illustrate the consequence of breaking the rules on the right half of each card.
2. Write down, in clear language, a simple sentence or phrase which describes each consequence.
3. Give the child three new 5x8 cards and a clipboard. Explain to the child, "Now we are going to find out about what other people think of your rules, and what happened to them when they broke rules at your age. You will play the part of a detective, looking for the "big rule" that is the one rule that no one should break. We are going to begin by asking three people two questions: "What was the most important rule to you when you were my age?" and "What happened when you broke that rule?" You can ask them other questions too if you like, but stick to the facts. Then give them blank cards and ask them to write the rule most important to them and what happened when they broke the rule, just as you did on your cards. We�ll show them one of your cards and ask them to draw a picture of the rule and the consequence of breaking the rule just as we did."

Younger kids - emphasize the game nature by having them wear a detective badge, interview the subject and so forth. The child should keep interviews short and help him prepare by interviewing you. Give the person to be interviewed an idea of the purpose of the activity beforehand. When all interviews are complete, ask him to compare them and see which "big rule" that is most important to people.

Emphasize that "Everyone breaks rules at some time in his or her life. Everyone has to live with the consequences of breaking rules. People agree that some rules are more important than others to obey.

What Others Think of Your Rules
Purpose: understand where and when these rules apply. This game is a card game that will help the child remember the rules that should be of most concern.

Make the Game

1. Cut the 5x8 cards in half to make 20 playing cards - 10 with rule and 10 with consequences
2. Make 10 more playing cards of the same size (five new 8x8 cards cut in half)
3. On the 10 new cards show the time nad place where the child normally breaks rules. These will be called When and Where cards. Photographs can be used to show the place where the child most often breaks the rules.
4. The time when the child usually breaks the rule should be written out and indicated by a clock face.
5. When the cards are ready, arrange them in a row in front of the child in order of the time of day, beginning with the cards showing time early in the morning and ending with the cards designating evening times.
6. Put the cards without exact times last (
7. Now using blue pencil put the number 1 to 10 on the backs of these cards to designate their sequence.

Complete deck of 30 cards - 10 with rules, 10 with consequences, and 10 with times and places that the child you are working with most often breaks rules.

Playing the game: The child must now try to understand when and where he must play by the rules that he has identified. Direct the child to take the ten rule cards and place them directly below the Where and When cards that you just made, which he thinks show where and when he is most likely to break each rule. Discuss with the child the placement of each card.

Secret Spy Game:  Example of a more sophisticated map activity to aid communication.
1.  draw a map of the child's house,  which includes each of the rooms where the child must perform chores.  Make 25 copies of the map.
2.  Each day write in two or three chores for the child to do.  Locate the direction in the room where the chore is to be done.
3.  Set a time each day when the child must perform the chores.
4. The adult should hide the map at least an hour before the chore is to be done.  The map should be hidden in a secret place known only to the child, for example, behind a picture or a book.
5.  As the child does each chore, he or she should take the map along and check off the appropriate box when the chore is complete.
6.  Directions for doing the chores may be written in a secret code, as in Annie's map, where the last word in the sentence is spelled backwards.
7.  When all the chores are done for the day, the child should return the map to the secret hiding place.
(Games to Grow On, Shapiro, 1981 p 68)
Cooking Up New Skills:  Cooking involves cognitive and behavioral skills that are important for the impulsive child to learn, and it is a high-interest activity that can be done very simply or with a good deal of flare.  Make your own recipe cards  - ones that don't require reading for younger children (picture-based).  Cut-outs from newspaper ads can also be used for the pictures.  See examples in book  (Games to Grow On, Shapiro, 1981 p 70).

Problem Solving/Decision-Making

Maze:  Give the child a paper with a maze on it and ask them to complete the maze.
Discuss what you observe.  Next, teach the child to use self-guided speech or self-talk to help complete the maze this time.  Teach how language can also be used to solve problems and make decisions similar to approaching the maze.  (Video Training Program:  Self-Control Techniques in Child Psychotherapy, Shapiro, 1995)

Listing Problem-Solving Steps:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 127)
Reproducible    "You Be the Judge" Activity Sheet

Making a Decision:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 130)
Reproducible    "Decisions, Decisions!" Activity Sheet

Reviewing Problem-Solving Choices:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 133)
Reproducible    "The Interview" Activity Sheet
                        "Transfer Activity" Activity Sheet

Applying a Method to Solve Problems:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 141)
Reproducible    "Sherlock Hound" Puppet

Relaxation Skills
BARK - Behavioral Anger Reduction Kit Resource Materials from SDCA 2002 Conference, Sioux Falls, SD

Relaxation Strategies-Skill #125: (Teaching Social Skills to Youth, 1992, p 202)

Tolerance/Acceptance (demonstrating)
Recognizing Individual Differences:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 205)
Reproducible    "Word Search" Activity Sheet
                        "Different Times" Activity Sheet
Accepting Each Person's Uniqueness: (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 209)
Reproducible    "Dealing With Prejudices" Activity Sheet
                        "The Aliens Have Landed!: Activity Sheet

Appreciating Our Differences:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 213)
Reproducible    "Treasure Hunt" Activity Sheet
                        "Positive Qualities" Activity Sheet

Responding to negative criticism
Accepting criticism or a consequence - Skill #5 (Teaching Social Skills to Youth, 1992, p 81)
Accepting consequences for Inappropriate Behavior:  ()
-Reproducible "Write the Consequence" Activity Sheet and "Letter to Home" Activity Sheet

Impulse Control
 

Thinking Numbers Out Loud: Use math flash cards relevant to child's level. Give the child a plain sheet of paper, and place on of the cards on the top of the paper. Ask the child to solve the problem, and when he or she is through turn over the card to see if the answer is right. If it is right, give the child praise and write a score of three points on the paper. If it is wrong, turn the card back over and place a Stop, Look and Think card next to the problem card saying "Now I want you to try thinking aloud as you solve the problem. Just say whatever you are thinking." If the child gets the right answer the second time he tries the problem, give him two points on the paper and go on to the next card in the desk. If he gets it wrong, say "Let me do the problem for you, showing you how I think out loud. Listen carefully, because I will want you to say the same things that I say." Then proceed to solve the problem, thinking out loud in simple short phrases.

Step-by-step

1. Give the child a problem card and a blank piece of paper.
2. If he/she solves the problem right, 3 points
3. If the child gets the answer wrong, have him/her think out loud and try again.
4. If he/she gets the right answer now, 2 points

Slow Things:  game in which children must practice imitating very slow things such as a turle, a broken car, a bubble or leaf floating in the air, or a worm.  Have the child pantomime the slow thing he or she likes best and then have somebody else try to guess what he or she is miming.  Variation-use slow music with a strong beat or beat a drum more and more slowly.  After some practice, ask the child to complete a task the way a turtle would do it and see if he/she is able to slow down his/her movement while doing purposeful activities.  (Games to Grow On, Shapiro, 1981 p 72)

Guessing time:  simple game to help children be more aware of time by judging the length of different time intervals.  Take a kitchen timer and set it for five minutes.  Let the child guess when the five minutes are up.  Have the child think of tricks to help estimate - counting, a TV commercial or song. Rules of the game are:
1.  Set the timer to 5 minutes, hide it, and say "Go."  The child should say "STOP" when he or she thinks five minutes have passed, and you would immediately stop the timer.
2.  The child must try to estimate this 5-minute interval for five trials.
3.  The child begins the game with 10 points, but he/she loses a point on each trial for each minute that he/she overestimates or underestimate the passage of time.  For example, if he/she says stop after only 3 minutes has elapsed, he/she loses two points.
4.  Keep a record of the child's estimates.
5.  The child's final score will indicate his/her accuracy at estimating time.  The higher the score, the better the child's sense of the passage of time.  A score of three points or better wins the game.

(Games to Grow On, Shapiro, 1981 p 73)

Refusing Requests in a Positive Manner:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 91)
Reproducible    "What's Your Reaction?" Activity Sheet
                        "Reaction Sheet"

Maintaining Self-Control:  (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 97)
Reproducible    "Self-Control Reaction Sheet" Activity Sheet

Remaining Calm Under Stress: (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 100)
Reproducible    "A Trying Situation" Activity Sheet

Practicing Self-Restraint: (Ready-to-Use Social Skills Lessons & Activities for Grades 4 - 6 and Grades 1-3, Ruth Weltmann Began, 1998, p 103)

Mazes:
"Often used to measure impulsivity in children because they allow us to miniaturize the world and look at the child's problem on a smaller scale. When presented with a maze, the impulsive child typically reacts very quickly and immediately begins the maze, paying very little attention to which way the paths go. Impulsive children typically enter blind alleys, cut corner, wanders with the pencil and is sloppy. A reflective child examines the maze before beginning, stays within the path, and enters fewer blind alleys before beginning, stays within the paths, and enters fewer blind alleys because he/she looks ahead before making a choice, and he takes an organized, evaluative approach to the maze rather than relying on trial and error. Mazes can be used to help the impulsive child to think and consider alternatives before acting. The ultimate goal is to teach the child to slow down and analyze problems before attempting them"  (From Games to Grow On, Shapiro, 1981)

Maze: Give the child an enlarged copy of the maze in 3-D format. Copy a maze and put it on the bottom of a box and then mark the correct path with a yellow ribbon. Next put a doll dressed as the same sex as the child next to the maze. Then Say, "I want your doll to solve this maze. Start at the beginning at the word "GO" and follow the yellow ribbon until the doll comes to the end. When you come to a red circle you must say "Hop three times slowly, and your doll must hop three times. When you come to a blue square, you must say  "Do two slow somersaults", and your doll must turn around twice in the air. When you finish the maze, you will get 5 chips. When you get 40, you will get a prize. Encourage the child to talk through the actions slowly and clearly.

A-maze me again: using the same box maze, take up the yellow ribbon and replace the circles and squares. Then say, "I want you to run the same maze again, but this time it will be harder because I've taken up the ribbon, and you will have to find the way out by yourself. If you can do this, you will get ten chips each time your run the maze correctly. However, you must whisper to yourself "Hop three times slowly", and your doll must do this when you come to a blue square. You must whisper "Do two slow somersaults" when you come to a red circle, and your doll must do this also. If your doll forgets to hop or somersault in the right place, you will not win any points." Having the child whisper the correct response at the intermediate steps of the maze is in itself an intermediate step in teaching the child to use silent thoughts to control his/her actions.

STOP, LOOK, THINK Cards

Add the Stop, look and think card to any intersection where the child has previously taken the wrong direction. When he comes to a cue card, he should whisper, Stop, look ahead, and think," before proceeding.

One-More-Time Maze:

"Now I want you to have your doll solve a more difficult maze. There are more traps here, so you must whisper to yourself "Stop, look, and think" every time you come to an interaction where you have a decision to make. You will get 15 points every time you can complete the maze, but every time you go into a blind alley, you will have 5 point deducted. When you go into a blind alley and come out of it, I'll place a Stop, Look, and Think card there so that you won't make the same mistake twice."

1. The adult performs the problem that the child is having trouble with, thinking out loud as he works.
2. The child does the same problem, repeating the key phrases that the adult has used.
3. The child solves the same problem again, this time repeating the key phrase in a whisper.
4. The child solves the same problem a third time, this time saying the key phrase silently to him or herself.

To apply this to the mazes, the child should go through the following procedure

1. The adult should run the maze up to the point where the child had trouble. He/She should think aloud as he/she goes, saying simple phrases such as "Now I must make a decision. I must slow down to do this. I must look ahead before I enter an alley. I must follow the path first with my eyes. Then I will go ahead." The adult should finish the maze using these phrases at each intersection where a choice is necessary. Remember that the intersections where the child had difficulty before will be marked with a Stop, Look, and Think cue card.
2. The child should then run the maze using the doll, repeating aloud the same phrases that the adult used each time he comes to a cue card. When he completes the maze, he gets 15 points if he/he has not gone into any blind alleys (5 points are deducted each time he goes into a blind alley).
3. The child should then run the maze a second time, but now he/she should whisper the phrases when he/she comes to the cue cards. The same point system applies.
4. Finally, the child should run the maze saying the phrases to him/herself when coming to the cue cards. The same point system applies.
5. As a final test of whether the child has learned to run the maze correctly using the thinking-out-loud technique, have him or her run the maze one last time, about four days later without cue cards. Time the child with a stopwatch. He or she should be able to run the maze with very few errors, and should show signs of analyzing the maze as he/she goes (pausing at difficult intersections, moving their lips and they speak to themselves). Compare this time on the maze to the first time he/she ran it. If it is slower, and the child makes fewer mistakes, you can assume that he/she has learned some new intellectual process which helped him/her to reach the goal.

A-mazing Homework: If the child enjoyed the maze activities, encourage interest by giving him mazes for homework in which he/she can demonstrate ability to solve problems and control impulsivity.

Rebound:This game can also help with self-control.  The ADHD child will throw wildly at first, but the counselor can model self-control and use those words to help the child focus on what she/he is doing.  Have the child keep the score to develop and practice patience. (From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Game: Stop, Relax and Think  (This board game can be purchased through the Self-Esteem Shop).  The game has sections for feelings, relaxation, stopping on time, and problem solving.  Kaduson says most kids enjoy this game because it mixes activity with answering questions and getting chips.  (From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Pick up Sticks: The counselor must practice and be good at this game so that he/she can win or lose at will.  Have the child go first so that he/she can get the easier sticks.  Always use the words "self-control" to help the child understand the pacing of their movements and the possibility of generalizing this to bigger situations.  (From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Board Games:  Strategic board games are very useful in helping a child stop and think before acting.  The counselor should comment on his/.her own moves every time a move is made.  Helping the child decide on a move will come naturally if the counselor is constantly speaking.  Using the game as a metaphor for the child's life will help him or her better understand stopping and thinking before acting.  Examples of such board games are Trouble, Sorry, Connect Four, and Checkers.  It is possible to play by rules that the child makes up if the therapist makes the rule change and calls it "Amy rules" rather than "board game rules." (From Video Training Workshop:  Play Therapy for Children with ADHD, Kaduson, 1998)

Communicating feelings versus acting on them:  Instruct students to do the following:
-draw a picture with a box of crayons
-8 crayons for eight feelings
-divide the paper into how much to color based on how often you have that feeling
This big sheet of paper is your whole life.  Feel free to draw people, designs and whatever you want using the colors.  These are the different feelings.
(Video Training Program:  Self-Control Techniques in Child Psychotherapy, Shapiro, 1995)