Loni’s teacher has not reported any behavioral problems. However, she has reported that Loni’s only friend in school is a boy,

  

Loni’s teacher has not reported any behavioral problems. However, she has reported that Loni’s only friend in school is a boy, Trevor, who appears to “boss Loni around.” There have also been some reports from the playground supervisors that the other children tease Loni at recess. The teacher reports that Loni is “very clingy” and “inappropriately affectionate” with her and the other teachers.

Last week, during parent-teacher conferences, the school counselor had an opportunity to talk with Will and Loni’s parents (Johnny and Mila). During that meeting, the parents brought Will and Loni’s sister, Keely (9 months); the boys were playing on the school playground.

The counselor first asked the parents about Will’s behavior. They reported that he exhibited similar behavior outside of school. They reported that he has always been “unruly” and “wild.” His father also reported that Will “cried too much.” Both parents expressed their desire to get Will’s behavior under control, with his mother saying at one point, “bless his little heart, but he just needs to man up.” Both parents expressed their belief that the world posed many challenges for young people, and that the best way to prepare a child was to be a “strict” parent. “I’m not his friend, I’m his father,” Johnny said.

Concerning Loni, Mila agreed that he was “very clingy,” which she said made taking care of the household difficult. Contrasting his behavior to Will’s, Mila said, “Will hardly ever seeks affection,.. he’s kind of a stone face, really.”

At one point, Mila wondered out loud whether their strict parenting might (somehow) be related to the boy’s behavior, at which point Johnny glared sharply at her and raised his voice. Mila the raised her voice, which elicited a sharper response from Johnny. Mila flinched when he did this.

During the entire meeting, Keely (age 9 months) was very fussy and “squirmy.” Mila said that all three children had been “colicky from the get-go.” “Our kids are not easy,” Johnny said.

(Note: it is easier to work backwards, starting with the presenting problem. By doing so, you are able to identify more than one area of competence associated with the presenting problem, and more than one antecedent circumstance associated with the area of competence.