Behavioral problems are the topic of the hour. One of the following two approaches is often taken:

Behavioral orientation: Put simply, these recommendations are usually structured in an if-then pattern: “This measure is recommended for this behavior.” Individualization here means adapting to behaviour. However, the focus on the emotional experience is missing.
Relationship orientation: Newer approaches, on the other hand, advocate focusing less on behavior and more on class climate or relationships, which is of course welcome from the perspective of attachment theory. However, emotion-related individualization is usually not yet the case.

The intervention cards combine both approaches, PLUS they bring in a third component:
Attachment pattern-oriented individualization: As a teacher I know, “I have to deal with Peter this way, with Heidi rather differently.”

It is precisely this triple balancing act – behaviour-oriented, emotion-oriented and individualized in terms of attachment patterns – that is achieved with the action cards that were developed with two special education students from the Valais University of Teacher Education as part of their Master’s thesis. The intervention phase with 10 pupils in 6 classes has The intervention phase been completed and the evaluation interviews are consistently positive.

They first describe 26 behavioral and emotion-oriented measures, e.g. offering a choice of tasks, routines for escalating behavior, thanking instead of praising. Then each measure is examined from the perspective of attachment theory:
– What effect will the measure have on ambivalent pupils?
– What do I need to bear in mind with avoidant tendencies?
– Where do I need to make adjustments if disorganized behavior occurs frequently?

All of this is important when I
– want to plan attachment-oriented measures for individual pupils,
– want to check whether measures taken or planned are being implemented in a attachment-conscious manner,
– I want to shed light on my own cherished didactic routines with a focus on bonding and
– if I want to adapt measures that are intended for individual pupils to a whole class, because then all attachment patterns have to be taken into account.

And now we are offering an opportunity to participate: There is still a lot of revision and design effort ahead. We therefore distribute the Preprint of the current beta version at a supporter price of 50. – or even more – and hope to receive valuable feedback that can be incorporated into the final version.

That’s inside:
– 4 cards, 2-sided, which describe the four attachment styles and how they manifest themselves in the school context in a concise and graphically clear way.
– 2 cards with instructions on the procedure for selecting measures and the structure of the intervention cards.
– 26 action cards. They each contain a description of the measure, a description of the conceivable problem behavior and 3 tips for implementation in children with signs of disorganized, ambivalent or avoidant behavioral tendencies. As we initially concentrated on the more demanding patterns, there is still no information on the secure attachment style in the beta version.
– The measures relate to the school context. In the following download, however, 17 of the 26 measures are identified in the table of contents, which can be adapted quite naturally to the context of family and education .

The cards are available from the store and enter the price – 50.- or more – yourself. https://bondingboard.com/shop

We are happy to receive feedback on the following questions:
– Errors and inconsistencies
– Additional measures that should be highlighted and included in the final version
– Information on your own attachment-focused measures (also outside the school context)
– Suggestions for the (still somewhat brief) instructions and handling of the cards
– Experiences in use – a case study maybe

Thank you very much,
Jennifer Schumacher, Katharina Roten and Lothar Steinke