Teacher's Blog About 'That Kid' is a Tear-Jerker

The Farmington Public School district distributed by email Thursday a thought-provoking installment in the “Miss Night’s Marbles” blog written by a kindergarten teacher at a private school in Canada.

The blog, titled “About that Kid,” explores some of the circumstances that may be behind a child’s misbehavior in school and addresses parents’ fears that may be interfering with their children’s behavior.

The school district said the blog “poignantly describes the difficulties that some of our children face, as well as describing and honoring the daily work of our early childhood teachers and assistants. It is a true call for compassion and understanding!”

We agree. It’s worth a read.

“I know. You’re worried. Every day, your child comes home with a story about THAT kid,” the blog starts out. “The one who is always hitting shoving pinching scratching maybe even biting other children. …

“I want to talk about THAT child, too, but there are so many things I can’t tell you.

“I can’t tell you that she was adopted from an orphanage at 18 months.

“I can’t tell you that he is on an elimination diet for possible food allergies, and that he is therefore hungry ALL. THE. TIME.

“I can’t tell you that her parents are in the middle of a horrendous divorce, and she has been staying with her grandma.

“I can’t tell you that I’m starting to worry that grandma drinks…

“I can’t tell you that his asthma medication makes him agitated.

“I can’t tell you that her mom is a single parent, and so she (the child) is at school from the moment before-care opens, until the moment after-care closes, and then the drive between home and school takes 40 minutes, and so she (the child) is getting less sleep than most adults.

“I can’t tell you that he has been a witness to domestic violence. …”

Read the full blog here.

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