Yesterday when I went to pick up Makayla from school, her teacher, Mrs. E, asked if she could talk with me. Uh oh! I thought. She told me that Makayla refused to go to music class. Whenever she would try to take Makayla in the classroom, Makayla would grab onto her and hide her head. When they pushed a little further, Makayla actually started to cry saying it was too scary.
I was a little confused by this because Hello! she was talking about my daughter who sings in her sleep (yes, I actually caught her doing that) and while she goes potty.
Mrs. E said they have a male music teacher and his appearance can be a little intimidating to some kids, but they've never had a problem this extreme before. She offered for me to meet Mr. R with Makayla to see if that would help calm her fears. We started walking that direction, but as soon as Makayla found out where we were going, she stopped dead in her tracks. No, no, no! No Mom! I can't go over there. It's too scary! Please mom, No!
So I left her on the playground while I met Mr. R. Admittedly, I was taken back by his appearance at first: he's a little taller than me, overweight, goatee, tinted glasses, feminine voice, and originally from India. It took me 30 seconds to discover that he is one of the most delightful people I have ever met.
Mr. R, Mrs. E, and I discussed Makayla and some ideas to help her get over her fears.
This morning when I walked Makayla to her class, Mrs. E told me that she and Mr. R had talked with the principal, Mr. S, and that he would like to meet with me this morning if possible. He and I talked about what happened yesterday and brainstormed to figure out how to go about this situation.
Answer: He showed me the schedule and I'm going to go into music class with her next week. Hopefully, with me there, Makayla will feel a little safer and realize that music class is fun and that Mr. R is not someone who should be feared. At least that's the plan.
I came away from the school today with a few thoughts. 1-I'm really impressed with her school that they deal with a problem head on and waste no time in trying to find a solution. 2-I love that they include me right away instead of just trying to fix the problem themselves and possibly creating bigger problems. 3-I like that they didn't push Makayla to do something that she was obviously uncomfortable with. I know she has to go to class in the future, which I totally expect, but the fact that they care enough to respect her 5-year-old self speaks volumes to me.
So even though we are dealing with issues on the first day of school, I am so glad that she is in kindergarten and already learning valuable life lessons.
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Makayla on her first day. She really was excited to go. Unfortunately, the picture where she was smiling turned out blurry. Don't mind the syrup spot on her pants. Today I was smarter and had her get dressed after she ate breakfast.
6 comments:
I agree! The way the school deals with problems is awesome! However it is very important for Makayla to work through her feelings too, not for a group of adults to deal with the problem for her, your support is great, but be sure to have a conversation with her about why she is scared, what scares her, is it the teacher himself, or the moving out of her "homeroom"?
If it is the teacher himself, you could talk to her about how Heavenly Father made everyone, and take it from there, but if it is the transition that is bothersome, maybe you need to implement some of your home routine, make sure Makayla has enough warning and has been where she is headed BEFORE going with the class, maybe a tour of the school is in order?
That's just off the top of my head, take it or leave it :)
That's great Amanda! Thank you. Those are things I hadn't considered.
Holy crap! Makayla looks just like Kasey in that picture! Thats spooky!
I hope that things get worked out! Kindergarten is a change, thats for sure!!
Good luck. She looks so grown up. I can't believe how big they are getting.
Laura, I am so glad that you like Makayla's school. Hailey and Lauren have enjoyed class together. I miss you guys!! At least Jodi is here and we console each other.
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