Curwin and Mendler's Discipline with Dignity stood out to me the most this week because I am currently struggling with a student who displays so many of the behaviors they describe. This student, a 2nd grade boy, is highly intelligent but emotionally immature, often using humor, disruption, and verbal manipulation to avoid work or regain control. Reading this really helped me realize that his behavior isn't random, it's purposeful. Curwin and Mendler explain that misbehavior is often rooted in unmet needs like attention, control, or emotional regulation (pg. 45-46). That really resonated with me, especially as I reflected on how much time I've spent trying to reason with him or talk through choices, only the end up in a verbal power struggle. The authors point out that we can't change students through persuasion alone, instead we have to identify the core of the behavior and change the environment to support better choices (pg. 43-45).

Moving forward, I'm planning to shift away from discussion heavy discipline and toward more structure. Instead of debating or trying to catch him out in dishonesty, I want to implement clear expectations, simple daily check-ins, predictable consequences, reflection sheets, and a reset space for him somewhere in the classroom. Curwin and Mendler emphasize that discipline should be built on structure rather than punishment, and that responsibility is taught through consistent systems, not lectures or power struggles (pg. 5-9). As a Catholic school teacher, this really challenged me to think about how I balance virtue formation with behavior training. Teaching kindness, honesty, and respect matters deeply to me, but this reading helped me see that students also need concrete behavioral structures in place before they're even able to internalize those virtues. 

The authors also explain that real change takes repetition, clear boundaries, controlled choices, and a willingness to sit with discomfort during growth (pg. 48-54). This student of mine comes from a very permissive environment and lacks internal regulation, which makes classroom structure even more important. What I'm taking away from Discipline with Dignity is that discipline isn't about fixing a child emotionally (which I so badly wish I could do), it's about creating systems that teach responsibility while preserving dignity. My hope is that by strengthening structure in my classroom, and specifically within a new behavior plan for this student, I can better support him not only academically but also in developing the self control and responsibility that are essential to both learning and virtue. 

Curwin, R. L., Mendler, A. N., & Mendler, B. D. (2018). Discipline with dignity: How to build responsibility, relationships, and respect in your classroom (4th ed.). Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.