New school & behaviour

[nut3lla]

Looking for some advice. I've moved to a new school, nice area. 90% of the children are absolutely lovely, well mannered, keen to learn.
However a small minority swear, bite staff, this week a boy urinated in another child's shoe, fight, speak back/shout at staff. All very unacceptable. I've been teaching a long time & find this very unacceptable behaviour & very much expected a bit of back up from the management team when dealing with this.

Herein lies the problem - this new school doesn't believe in consequences. They have a restorative approach to behaviour problems. The children know there is no consequence & therefore carry on this sort of behaviour on a daily basis. Their parents have been informed at times but there still is no improvement.

What can I do? It's the end of week 4 and 2 members of staff are absent with stress. I'm struggling but carrying on!? I've shut the door & tried being in my own little universe but there's too many playground/wet lunchtime incidents to realistically have s chance.

I'm a really dedicated, good teacher but have no idea how to do this alone. All the teaching staff feel the same! required tonight!

How old are they?

TBH an 8yo who bites staff has some serious underlying issues that are not going to be fixed by missing a break time, or even a suspension.

Have you been to discuss it with the Head as frankly as you have written it here? If so, what did he or she say about how they expect it to be managed? Is there anyone in the school who has managing these kids nailed? If so, go and see them and talk to them about what they have in place maybe?

Thanks for reading & replying. Children are 6/7. Management well aware of what is going on but are largely unavailable to speak to (don't want to hear!) it seems. Problems are long running in the school apparently but I'm new to the situation. The children biting are ASD but in mainstream class. It's the 'normal' children I'm concerned about. Machine gunning around, refusing to do things to my face, telling me they're not doing work. Not allowed to do any more than try to talk them around which doesn't work at all. I feel like a really shit teacher. I just can't understand the idea that consequences are bad. Management just say it's society nowadays when pressed! Tearing my hair out!

Rather than consequences can you build in frequent, small incentives? For example everyone who finishes the work they've been set gets 10mins choosing time, or extra run about/ game outside, at the end of that lesson. If they haven't finished, they do so during that time.

It's not a 'punishment', just earning access to desirable things. (This is the basis of ABA so should work well with autistic pupils- it is one of my main facilitation strategies in my specialist setting).