Description
Children’s behaviours often make more sense when we look beyond “What’s wrong with this child?” and instead ask, “What has happened to this child?”
This downloadable Power Threat Meaning Framework (PTMF) Diagram helps parents, carers, educators, and professionals understand children’s emotions and behaviours through a compassionate, trauma-informed lens. Rather than focusing on labels or symptoms, this framework explores how a child’s experiences, relationships, and environment can shape the way they think, feel, and respond to the world around them.
This visual resource will help you understand:
- How experiences of power can affect a child’s wellbeing and development
- The threats children may perceive in their environment
- How children make meaning of their experiences
- Why certain behaviours may develop as coping or survival responses
- How understanding a child’s story can strengthen connection, empathy, and support
By using the Power Threat Meaning Framework, adults can begin to see behaviour as communication and recognise the resilience behind the ways children adapt to challenging circumstances.
This easy-to-follow diagram offers a powerful alternative to blame and judgement, helping adults develop a deeper understanding of the children in their care. It encourages curiosity, compassion, and connection, creating opportunities for children to feel safer, more understood, and better supported.
When we understand a child’s experiences, we are better able to meet their needs. This resource provides a practical framework for doing exactly that.
Download instantly and gain a deeper understanding of the story behind a child’s behaviour.
