School:
To the tune of REM's "It's the end of the world..."
It's the end of the quarter as I know it.
It's the end of the quarter as I know it.
It's the end of the quarter as I know it, and I feel fine.
Well, mostly fine. Tired. Overworked. Behind on blogging due to catching up with grading. But fine overall. :)
Today is the last day of 1st quarter. Monday is "planning day" (no school for students) when my grades are due, and I'll work on next quarter's ideas/thoughts/planning schemes.
Sad: A 7 year old in a neighboring county was killed this week. After 2 days of an Amber Alert for missing children, they found her body in a trash landfill. So very, very tragic. I was saddened by the news. And then...
After school yesterday, Emma told me she had heard a "very sad story" at school. She proceeded to tell me about a little girl named Summer who got into a fight with her brother when they were walking home from school, so Summer ran away from her brother. "And do you know what happened, Mommy? A stranger got her and killed her. And they found her in a dumpster."
WHAT?????????? How does my 5 year old know about this? When I asked her where she heard the sad story, she said they talked about it in school today with their teacher. She said her teacher told students the story and then told them strangers might "look pretty" or "seem nice" or "say they want to give us candy" "but we should NEVER go with them!"
While I appreciate the stranger-danger lesson, I am appalled that my child was told about a girl being killed and left in the trash. Am I being too over protective? I think my 5 year old is still too young for such specific details.
What pushed me over the edge was when we were getting ready for bed last night. Em came into our room and said, "I'm sad about Summer." She then shared the story with DH. And told him they had WATCHED THE NEWS ON HER TEACHER'S COMPUTER at school today. WHAT??? We are very upset. DH tried to meet with the director of Em's school today when he dropped her off, but the director wasn't in yet.
Obviously Em is dwelling on this. I think it is a lot for a little girl to take in. Hell, I'm 34 and I can barely absorb it. Maybe I'm being too motherly, but I am angered that my child was exposed to harsh news without us being asked or informed. Do you think I'm overreacting?
7 hours ago
10 comments:
That is awful, the story of the little girl and your poor daughter. I don't think you are over reacting AT ALL! I would be doing the same thing...school is a place of learning, and I think her teacher needs an extra few days to help plan if she doesn't have anything better to do than show the news coverage to her class, ugh, those poor kids, that is way too much for them to take in.
no way - I wouldn't like that either. One thing to talk in generalities about strangers, quite another to watch a video about a horrific event. Yikes!
I would definitely protest the teacher showing them the newscast without parental permission. You can only do so much to shield your child from the ugliness in this world, but why subject them to knowledge that is too heavy for them to carry? She may have had the best intentions, but I would think there should be some kind of school policy about getting parental permission before showing kids things like this.
I totally agree. Completely unacceptable to tell 5-year-olds a story like that, even if there are good intentions to keep them safe. And watching the news can be highly traumatic for children! I would start by telling the teacher your concerns. Hopefully she'll respect your wishes -- if not, time to go higher in the chain.
Wow! I agree that the 'stranger-danger' talk is a good one, but think that the teacher was out-of-line.
And YEAH for the end of the quarter!
Oh my goodness! Poor little Miss Em! You are more than right to be upset about this! There are age appropriate ways to communicate the stranger-danger lesson, without letting kindergarten aged children watch the news. That's just horrifying. I will be sending prayers that Em will not affected long-term by this.
I hope that the second quarter of the school year goes easier for you than the first has.
I think you are totally correct in your reaction. Totally inappropriate that a teacher should show that information!!!!
Wow, I saw the story on the news here in Ohio but didn't realize how close it was to you... And certainly didn't think anyone would be telling my 5 year old niece about it! You're right to be upset; I'd talk to the teacher and not just the director. Think how you feel as a teacher, you'd want a parent to talk with you first before going straight to your boss. Tell her what you said here-- you appreciate stranger-danger warning, and then share your concerns for this being too graffic and heavy for 4 & 5 year olds. Glad we've both made it through the end of our quarters! Yay! :)
I don't blame you for being upset! I would be too! I can see how the teacher would talk about it with the students, especially if they brought up the subject. But to watch the news? Not OK with me! That, I think is taking it a bit too far. If the teacher believes it's important, then maybe send a note home or something. She may have been trying to educate the children, but it looks like she scared them. I would talk to the director or the teacher and find out what the situation is/was.
*HUGS*
That was completely out of line. I can understand her "explaining" a bit of the situation if asked but showing them the news on her computer is so very wrong. I wish my 10 y/o didn't know either but at that age they all talk. I definitely don't let her walk home by herself anymore even though it's just 2 blocks in a closed neighborhood with lots of other kids around. Scary world these days.
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