Polly Bath: I think it is always best to verbalize your understanding of an event a child is telling you.

When a child is going off and blaming someone for something, I stop them and say, “So, you feel like somebody shouldn’t have done this to you? Is that correct? Is that what I’m hearing?”

“Yeah! That’s it.”

I make sure we are on the same page. I just re-say what the child said in a different way.

“Am I hearing that you feel this way about that? Oh, you really think that teacher hates you, because they throw you out every time you come in the door?”

“Yeah! That’s right. That’s what they do, that’s why I feel that way!”

“All right, go ahead continue…”