A child in my school struggled to control their temper this week.

After talking with them I found out they have a keen interest in superheroes.... Spiderman being their favourite.

They found out that I have a keen interest in superheroes too -

I'm a Marvel man myself.

We talked about all things avengers then we discussed time travel... (Avengers Endgame)

I said "I'm going to let you into a secret...you have superpowers...but you just don't know it yet"

Their eyes on me the whole time ...

I continued "you can, if you want to, be a time traveler...you can control the future ....do you want to know how?"

They nodded.

"Control the present!" I whispered

"Control the now! Whatever you do now will effect what happens in the future!"

I let that sink in....then....

"....so if I try my best..if I persevere... I will succeed"

"If you try your best..." I said " if you persevere you will always be a better version of you....with a better chance of succeeding than if you do not try"

After a few seconds-

"Mr T...I want to be a time traveler...

I'm going to control the present"

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The child will not do this alone. It will be with our support. Be that the use of our behaviour policy, sanctions for poor behaviour, rewards for positive behaviour or increased pastoral support.

There needs to be a flexible mix of structures, support and sanctions.

Not a one size fits all response.
Because all come in different shapes and sizes. With different experiences and backgrounds some visible and some not.