Weekly Update, lazy version

I'm feeling a bit low this weekend - not sick, not depressed, just lazy and unwilling to do much thinking. So I'm going to take the easy way out. Instead of introducing a new friend, some updates on those already on the blog.

Toddler Girl FINALLY got pulled by the SPED teacher for testing. SPED brought her back after the first day of tests, poked her head in the door, rolled her eyes dramatically and said "No doubt, Mrs. Kindergarten, no doubt! She's going to be mine!" I'm now trying to keep the SPED ball rolling so that we can have all the testing done, all the paperwork filled out, all our ducks in a row before Parent/Teacher conferences the last week of Oct. Then I'll schedule her mother for a double conference time (30 mins instead of 15) and we will lay it all out for her. Or at least, that's my nefarious plan! I spoke briefly to a friend who also happens to be the Parents as Teachers facilitator who served Toddler Girl prior to school and she filled me in on some background I didn't know. Apparently Toddler Girl attended the preschool program at the Christian school two towns over last year and was kicked out because the teacher found her "completely unmanageable". To which I say bull - she's a handful, she requires near constant attention, and she can be a PITA, but not unmanageable. You just have to treat her like the 2-3 yr old that she is (mentally, anyway) and if you always keep it in the back of your mind that you are dealing with a toddler, not a kindergartner, then you will be fine. Of course - and yes, I know I'm being intolerant here - that particular "teacher" has absolutely no college hours, no credentials, and no previous teaching experience. As a matter of fact, prior to becoming a preschool teacher she had been one of our secretaries for years and years.

Thing One had a horrible day on Thursday and wound up being removed from my room by Mr. Pip. Ever since I put him on the behavior contract, and daily behavior report, he has really tried to "be good" and keep his card green. And most days he manages it with great success. However Thursday he returned from Art with a note in his hand - never a good sign! It seems that as the class was lining up to leave Thing One pushed his way into the middle of the line so that he could stand by a particular friend. Of course all the children behind he immediately started roaring in protest and Mrs. Art told him to go to the end of the line. Thing One screamed at her that he wouldn't, he was going to stand by Friend! So Mrs. Art wrote me a note, explaining what had happened, and requesting that Thing One flip a card for his behavior. Thing One handed me the note, watched me read it, and then threw himself on the floor in an all-out tantrum. Screams of "I don't WANT to flip a card! Mom will be MAD at me! I WON'T!" echoed up and down the hall as Thing One flailed, kicked, and all but frothed at the mouth. I waited for him to take a breath and then quickly interjected "Thing One! Stop it or I will call the principal to come get you!" He eyeballed me speculatively for a moment and decided to call my bluff by continuing his tantrum. Stepping over him (he was laying in the threshold of my classroom door) I buzzed the office and asked if any available administrator could please come to my room and take Thing One to calm down. Meanwhile the other children are huddled on our circle carpet, watching with wide eyes and bated breath. Thing One, realizing he had lost his audience, got up and moved into the room, where he threw himself into the rocking chair in my reading center, and continued his tantrum. I glanced down the hall, saw Mr. Pip emerge from the office, and said brightly to the others "Ok, let's go take a break!" which is teacher-speak for using the bathroom and getting a drink. In the hall I handed Mrs. Art's note to Mr. Pip, said sotto-voice "he's in full blown tantrum mode in my room" and then smiled sunnily at my worried little friends, trying to reassure them the adults were going to make everything better. Mr. Pip went into my room and then came back out, escorting a loudly sobbing Thing One up the hall. Thing One was gone for well over an hour and when he came back he was a much subdued little fellow. I had the joy of writing a note to Mom explaining briefly what had happened. Ironically if he would have just moved to the end of the line when Mrs. Art told him, without the verbal grandstanding, the whole situation could have been avoided!

Van Gogh had an unremarkable week. He has been working hard on controlling his outbursts and I have been giving him lots and lots of praise for being able to deal with frustration without screaming, kicking, or crying. He even removed himself to the quiet desk a time or two, when he knew he was about to lose it, which made me so proud of him!

Friday was our Fall Party. We have it at the beginning of October for two reasons - first, they have been in school long enough to have internalized most of the rules and I can relax a little and second, it's as far as possible from the "evil" Halloween. Oh the joys of living in the Bible Belt! When I first started teaching we had half-day Halloween parties, complete with a costume parade and contest. Now, because of so many parent complaints, we have insipid "Fall Parties" instead, and are discouraged from even mentioning Halloween too much. Blah! Anyway, as Fall Parties go, this one was a big hit! We had pizza, brownies, and organic chocolate chip cookies (most of the kids took one bite, made a horrible face, and threw those away!) along with apple juice for our snack. The mom in charge of games did a leaf craft project with them and then played a walking relay race and was even smart enough to have prizes for everyone at the end! The kids had fun without getting too wild, the room wasn't a total disaster after it was over, and I got to meet a couple of moms I had not met before. All in all, a success I'd say!

Oh! And I'm happy to report that Robby's leg seems all better and he made it through the week with minimal complaints. So I guess it was worth 3 of my precious 8 sick days to stay home with him and be a mom, right?

So that's the latest news from the trenches. Hey, if anyone is actually reading, would you do me a huge favor and leave a comment? Even if it's just "I'm here". I don't mind if I'm just writing for myself, but am curious if I have any readers at all...