Schoolyard - Negative Issues Behind the Scenes
by Shawneepaints
FeedTheVillage.com - Negative Issues Behind the Scenes
My daughter joined a softball team. Some of her problems in public school was because there were so many other kids who learned how to get away with bad things behind the scenes. It is no different on the softball field, but at least it's more temporary exposure and more open to the adult's view. In school, the kids would figure out how to do things when the adult couldn't see. In softball, they can only say things when the adult can't hear. One example is the threatening way the kids will speak to her when they are in the field. For example, they say, "You had BETTER catch that ball" and give her nasty looks. Not all the kids are that way, of course, but for someone who is non-confrontational, it can feel intimidating and make a person feel very unwanted and unwelcome. This is a mild example, to be sure, as all she has to do is ignore them. But I'm making a point here, so bear with me. Public school was becoming much worse. The kids seem to be getting braver about what they try to get away with. My daughter joined an after school program, which we were very excited about. She was looking forward to the new classes and learning something beyond the regular school work. The school was excited about beginning the program, too. But we soon discovered that it was not going to be as wonderful as we had hoped. None of her friends took the same after-school classes she took, so she was put into various groups of people whom she knew but had not had close contact with. These kids soon proved to be lazy, leaving her with the work on their projects. They also were unkind and made nasty comments or just ignored her completely. She became disillusioned with the program and finally gave up her efforts to join. There were cameras at the school, but the kids still managed to get away with stealing and fighting. They just figured out where the cameras were not and stole in those areas. They would figure out when the teachers were not close and fight anyway. But one of the worst things was how they treated each other. Even the teachers' children would be negative and mean when there was no adult watching and listening nearby. So when I thought about my problem with her being secluded more with homeschooling, I laughed at myself. How could it be worse than what she faced in school? That type of environment was not teaching her how to be more social. If anything, it was teaching her that it wasn't safe. No, the world is not going to be Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood and she does need to learn how to deal effectively with it. But sending her into that environment was not even giving her a chance to become stronger. Some kids just have to learn a different way and that wasn't the best way for her.
|
