The present article provides a literature review and describes a study examining the
effect of teaching young children (7–12 years of age) with social and emotional difficulties
to use intelligent behaviours habitually when faced with a problem. While
embedding a ‘habits of mind’ (HOM) approach into the whole-school programme has
become popular in many Australian schools, as it is in the UK and USA, there is limited
research on its impact on children who display challenging behaviours. Quantitative and
qualitative data were collected from an Australian primary school through teacher and
parent workshops, surveys and interviews with staff, students and parents. The results
of this small preliminary study indicate an increase for each of the HOM investigated,
with a general decline in problematic behaviours. The most prominent reported changes
were increased persistence at a given task, followed by applying past knowledge to new
situations, listening to others with understanding and empathy, improvements in managing
impulsivity, and thinking flexibly. Limitations of the study and possibilities for
future research are discussed.