Kindergarten Year Struggles

Have you ever had a moment when you thought you would just throw out everything you have learned out the window and just act on impulse? Yeah, I have.

My Son was just starting Kindergarten. He was the youngest in his class and had to test to be able to start as early as he did, but we knew he was ready. Preschool was a breeze for him and he had progressed so much that we had no doubt he would succeed and thought we would have no big issues with him starting when he did. Well, we were wrong.

Orientation day was a success, we met the teacher, the administrative staff and re-introduced ourselves to the Principle. Our Daughter went to the same elementary school, so we knew what to expect. The teacher seemed very thorough and very supportive. She handed out the informational packets, went through her curriculum and provided information to us on how to contact her. It was a breeze, and our son seemed to enjoy the idea of starting school.

Fast forward to the first week. My son comes home groggy and tired, which is normal, because he is in a full day class, but then he starts telling us that his teacher is mean. Of course I talk with him and ask why he thinks that. He proceeds to tell me that no one is allowed to talk during class and if someone does, they get sent to the "thinking chair". I tell him that it is important to always pay attention in class and when it is appropriate to have a side conversation and when it is not. He understands and I think nothing of it for the next week or so.

As time passes, my Husband and I notice that our son has become somewhat scared of going to school. He keeps telling us that he wants to stay home, that he doesn't like school or try to say that he is not feeling good that so he could stay home. I am genuinely concerned because he loves school and always enjoyed being around other kids. I asked him if someone was bullying him or if he was having any problems and eventually he told me that he keeps getting yelled at by the teacher. I asked him if he was paying attention in class and he said yes. He then told me that the teacher got in his face for dropping a pencil on the floor when he was trying to sharpen it. I asked if he was messing around in any way, and he told me he was not. This initially prompted my curiosity a little bit and my Husband and I decided to email the teacher to let her know how our son was feeling and see if we could work together to see exactly what was happening.

The response we received from the teacher only went to my Husband, even though I was the one who sent the email, which I thought was odd. My Husband read off her response and it blew me away. Her email consisted of negative remarks of our son advising that he did not listen, he should have never started school and that she was having a hard time grooming him.

We immediately set up a meeting and during that meeting, we were asking questions about his behavior. In person, the conversation went totally different. She advised that he was a great kid and is learning quickly, but had a hard time focusing and that he should be on medication. My Husband and I looked at each other in shock that a woman who does not have a medical license would make that statement. The conversation ended pretty quickly after that and we advised that we would work with him at home.

A few weeks later, our Son came home whimpering and said that the teacher was screaming at the entire class all day. Of course, I asked additional questions as kids can sometimes exaggerate. We came to the conclusion that the teacher was acting completely different around us verses how she is around the children. Our Son was afraid to go to school and asked to switch teachers. I told him that we would look into it.

Now, before I say this next part, I just want to let you know that the statute of limitation time frame has passed. In light of that, I decided to order a recording device from Amazon and stick it in my Sons backpack. They did not have lockers at the time and everything was kept in the classroom. When I listened to that recording after only having it in his backpack for one day, I was furious! The teachers voice was 5 tones lower than her normal squeaky, high pitched voice and she yelled at the kids and berated them the ENTIRE DAY! She had sent at least 8 kids to the "Thinking chair" that day for God knows what, because I could only hear her on the recording. That was the quietest Kindergarten classroom I have ever been in.

A meeting was set up with the Principal immediately. The day of the meeting, we walked into the office and guess who else was there..... the teacher. We had specifically asked for a one-on-one meeting with the Principal only. At the end of the conversation, nothing was done. The teacher got away with treating the children like cattle and we were contemplating on switching school systems.

The recording was not listened to during that meeting as it would have been illegal to bring it up, but we definitely made the teacher aware that we were listening. I kept the recording in his backpack for the remainder of the year and her tone switched dramatically. I am not sure if the Principal had a separate conversation with the teacher or if she just decided that she did not want to deal with it anymore, but things did change. The only negative remarks I got from her after that was when I brought brownies to the Christmas party instead of a salad.