I am an overprotective parent. I can admit it.
I don’t let my eight year old daughter play outside by herself. I don’t let her surf the internet by herself. I don’t let her spend the night at friends' houses when I don’t know the parents. I’m reluctant to let her play at the park with other kids, even when I’m there. I’m reluctant to let her ride the traveling gypsy carnival rides, for fear they might break down.
Some people have told me I’m too protective. I often think so myself. Then I look around and see small children running at large in the neighborhood, while cars speed past, with no adults around.
Yeah, I might be overprotective, but I know my kids are safe.
One of the hardest things for me has been sending my kid to school, where strangers are responsible for her safety. True, they’re licensed strangers, but it makes me nervous everyday.
She’s in the second grade now, and it has gotten a little easier. But recent events just serve to reinforce my unease at not being there 24-7 for my kids.
My daughter got locked outside of the school.
It was a simple enough sequence of events. She was at recess with the other kids and hit her head on the playground equipment. So they sent her to the nurse. Everything apparently checked out, and she was told to rejoin her class.
Simple eight year old logic told her to go back to the playground. The school door locked behind her as she exited the school, she rounded the corner… and the playground was empty.
Standing there, beating on the door, yelling for help for some minutes disturbed my daughter. She was upset enough about it to keep talking about it up through that night, after school. Eventually, another student walked buy and let her in and she was able to rejoin her class.
After school, the teacher walked her out to her grandma’s car (who watches her after school) and mentioned the incident in about the same amount of detail as I have here. But no note was sent home. No email from the teacher. No call.
Upsetting, especially since this was the second time she was locked out of the school, because she went outside and her class wasn’t there.
Now I know, you probably are wondering why she didn’t just walk to the end of the building and enter the set of doors by the office that are always open. I wondered. I asked. She didn’t think of it. I can see that. She’s only eight.
So I decided to call the school, to see if something couldn’t be done to keep this from happening again. I ended up speaking to the school counselor, as the principal was out sick.
I wasn’t mad at the counselor. I didn’t curse or yell at him. I mean, it’s not like it was his fault (I felt it was the fault of the teacher and nurse).
"What do you want us to do about it?" I was asked. Surprised, I responded that I didn’t want my child outside, without some adult supervision.
He agreed that "technically" the kids should always be supervised. He also agreed that a note could be put in her file for someone to make sure she gets back to class. Okay. That’s good. But while I had him on the phone, I asked about notes home. I had asked before if I could be notified whenever my child got sent to the nurse- I didn’t need a call right away or anything, but it’d be nice to have a note that advised what happened, rather than rely on my eight year old to accurately explain her injuries.
"We don’t do that," I was informed. If the kids get sutures or are bleeding, the parents get notified, I was advised.
I asked if that was school policy, or school corporation policy. I was advised it was school corporation policy. I could speak to the superintendent about it.
I was also told I was being rude.
"Silly me," I said, "for caring about the security of my child."
"Yes, silly you…. Happy Monday," the counselor responded, and hung up on me.
Wow.
That’s professional. Really the kind of behavior you expect from a counselor. A person who's supposed to preach patience to kids.
Perhaps next time I should curse and scream and carry on like a jackass. I know other parents who have done that- with the same man- and they didn’t get hung up on. In fact, they got what they wanted- their kid placed in the school a year early. All from cursing.
I should note that I later spoke to the School Corporation Superintendent. He agreed that children should be supervised at all times- that the teacher or nurse should make sure the kids get where they are going. He also agreed that if I wanted to be notified about nurse trips I should be. Oh, and that it is NOT school nor school corporation policy to notify or not notify parents about trips to the nurse.
And he apologized for the counselor being a prick.
Is there a moral to this story? Do I next time curse and scream?
Nah, I record. ‘Cause a recording of that call would have been a great thing to have. Like they tell us at work- always talk on the phone as if you’re being recorded.
Editor's Note: The illustration for this piece was done by K9Duke and is proudly powered by StripGenerator.com. Check 'em out. We do.
What a jerk! I’m so glad the school superintendent didn’t back him up.
My daughter is in year 2 as well, and luckily our school does send notes home for scrapes. – Otherwise I’d have no idea what’s going on!
Hope you get your notes in future
thanx for the credits!
No problem, Andraz. Thanks for providing a truly unique, useful, and entertaining resource.