My 7 year old daughter is a fabulous student - teachers pet - and friends with everyone. Today I got a call from the school saying she ran into another child and hit her head on the play ground today. Come to find out...she was actually shoved by a BOY and didn't tell on him. It made her black out. I was freaking out just a little. Not to mention I had to talk with the schools assistant principal a few weeks ago about a different little boy slapping her across the face. Believe me...I interrogated her AND talked to the teacher and she did nothing to start this. She is as cute as a button...and she said her friends at school say it's because the boys like her. What would you do? I'm kind of wondering where the heck the recess supervisors are when this stuff is happening?! Should I call the school again and be the pain in the butt? I know them very well (she has had 3 broken ankles in less than a year so we are VERY close with all of the teachers, administrators, etc.) Advice is sooooo welcome!!!
P.S. The "fabulous student" and "friends with everyone" came from the teachers...not me. They have all said she is the "ideal" student. She does have a bubbly personality but also somewhat shy at school. The ankle issue is NOT related to school. She has brittle bones which make me MORE cautious. The last broken ankle she had was caused from going from a sitting to a standing position. She is complete girly girl.
My daughter is decribed the same way and her sweetness made her a target. Most kids knew she would not tell, be mean back, or retaliate.
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Of course tell them.
They need to research and find out what is going on. You also need to help your daughter speak up for herself.
No one can help her if she does not say anything. She has a right to be safe at school.
Well my first thought is, maybe she is not as sweet as you think she is, while she is at school. She has been shoved down by a boy, slapped across the face by a boy. And she is fabulous, the teachers pet, and cute as a button. Could she maybe be annoying to the other kids? Or maybe is she a bit of a bully too? Does she get her way a lot, since she is so great? Maybe she doesn't get her way with the boys, and they get into it, and then the hitting begins. Why has she had 3 broken ankles in less than a year? Is she a tomboy? I'm just thinking maybe she is a little rough, and you are not aware? And the recess supervisors are always around, they just never seem to see the stuff that they need to. I don't really have any advice, just thought I'd send some thoughts. Good luck to you.
Sounds like you have one outstanding young lady there...she must have you so worried about this...
I would definitely talk to the principal. Your daughter was hurt and the issues going on at the playground during recess are of issue. My son got a concussion (very bad one) as a result of a student throwing a ball at my son's head during recess. This kid was not a bad kid, just egged on by some of the other boys. The teachers were engaging in small talk away from where the games were going on, so there was a big mess. You have the right to ensure your daughter is safe, and apparently there is something going on.
You do have to teach your daughter that it is ok to tell and NOT ok to take the blame for someone else. Does she think she would not be liked by the other kids if she tells?
Meet with the principal to put a plan of action in place. Perhaps there isn't enough teacher supervision because there aren't enough teachers...maybe a group of parents could help with recess and games. Volunteering would give you a good way to keep an eye on what is happening and perhaps find a reasonable way to solve it.
Take care,
B.
She blacked out? Were you called immediately? I am a school nurse and that is def a big deal...should be evaluated for a concussion and allowed to rest/sit out of sporting activities for a while (usually 2 weeks) to allow for healing.
If you don't advocate for her who will? I go into the school all the time with any issues I have and email my kids teachers regularly. I would rather keep communication completely open and get things as they happen. Plus my kids know 100% that I am there for them no matter what. Not saying you aren't at all...I'm just suggesting you go in and talk to them. I'm assuming 2nd grade? Definitely take up for her. If she was too shy to tell on him, who knows what else is going on.
Ugh. Sounds like another victim of rough-housing on the playground at recess. Doesn't sound like necessarily malicious behavior. Kids fall all the time. Even in a classroom, they tussel, push, shove a little.
I'm glad your daughter is a fabulous student, but that really doesn't have anything to do with this issue. NO kid deserves to be pushed hard enough to be knocked down, even in play, and supervision needs to be honed at your school. No, they cannot keep "an eye" on every student "every single minute" and accidents happen, but especially if I had a child with brittle bones, I would very much STRESS the need for supervision to be ramped up at recess. Good luck!
You are your daughter's advocate.
Do not CALL the school, You MUST go to the school.
Where are the recess supervisors? I don't know. I had to go to my school and watch from afar to find out what was happening on the playground.
Teachers were too busy yapping to each other instead of watching the kids.
They saw recess as their break as well...sorry!!! Took pics, gave them to the principal and recess changed.
It might serve you well to go to the school without your daughter knowing and observe her and the others on the playground. Bring your camera and video tape what you see. While the teachers MAY BE telling you these things...they may only be seeing part of it...sometimes our little angels aren't such little angels...and they do some instigating...and some don't realize they are instigating...
GOOD LUCK!!
I would go to the school. It's amazing what you find out from other teachers, aides, etc., when you go and start talking to people. I have been to my son's school several times this year because to hear the principal and one after school person tell the story, you would think he was some out of control psychopath, but no, about 20 other people who work there feel much differently. In our case it unfortunately seems to be a cross between one parent, her ties to the board and a race card issue. Go there. It may really illuminate things for you! Bottom line -7 year olds should know better than to slap people and your daughter needs to attend school without fear.
I think the school should be held accountable due to her hitting her head, plus she blacked out. She may not have told them she blacked out, since they didn't appear to have seen her down on the playground they may not have know the full extent of the injury.
The person who is supervising the playground could have been dealing with a fight, a child who needed to go to the bathroom asking if they could go in, any number of things could have happened, if you don't believe me work child care for one month...you'll be amazed at how much you miss even when you are standing there watching them, somehow it just happens.
My issues with what happened are:
She has a brittle bone issue...she head has a bone in it...a BIG bone, what if it had a fracture? Darn right the school better be calling if she even bumped her head on her desk!
The second thing is that once she got back in the classroom, if she told her teacher what happened, that teacher should have looked at her head and if she saw anything amiss she should have called you herself. Well, truly I would have called you anyway just to make sure you knew she had a bump. It is your call as to whether you took her for an X-ray or not.
You didn't mention taking her to the doctor. If you haven't I urge you to call the advice nurse. When someone loses consciousness there is a greater chance that they've had a concussion which may need attention.
Yes, talk with her teacher. You are a concerned parent and will not be considered a pain in the butt. That term is reserved for parents who complain about everything and request unreasonable responses.
As to where were the playground supervisors. I've been a volunteer playground supervisor for many years. At most there are 5-6 of us to cover a playground half the size of a city block. It's impossible to see everything. We expect children to come to us if something happens we haven't seen. I suggest that you tell your daughter she must go to a teacher or other adult on the playground when she is mistreated.
Yes, tell them. Whenever my kids is haveing any type of problem at school that they cant handle themselves, thats when I step in. Sometimes they have made me look like a complete fool by not telling me the full story. But at other times, my help really was needed.
Yes, tell them and make a big deal. Obviously their supervisors on yard duty aren't fulfilling their duties! Your daughter is being hurt and you need to protect her however you can. The person that shoved her should be in trouble too.
M
