Wednesday, March 11, 2009

It did not get better.

So, I have had numerous emails and FB entries asking if day 2 subbing with this horrible woman was any better than day 1. Um, I thought yes, but ultimately no.

I thought yes because:
-In the morning, she actually smiled at me twice.
-In the morning, she was amazingly kind to one boy who is in a wheelchair, blind and has numerous disabilities. She was fantastic with him. I was impressed.
-In the morning, she was almost nice...I think twice.

So, I decided that yesterday, maybe her husband had left her for his 20-yr-old secretary, her dog ran away and her kitchen caught on fire. Benefit of the doubt. Everyone has a bad day, right? Yep.

Then came lunch.

Now, let me explain - this is a pre-K class, so they only come half-day. So, we had one group of 8 kids from 9-11:30 and another group of 8 kids from 12:45-3:15.

So, when lunch came (even before the kids arrived...), she became silent again. One-word answers (if she bothered to answer me at all), very little information, leaving the room without saying a single word about when she would be back, scowling, etc.)

I've decided her meds must wear off at noon.

But I digress...

The afternoon was HORRIBLE. She was horrible to me, but you know what? I'm a grownup. I can handle it, and I am aware that (gasp) maybe EVERYONE doesn't like me. (I know, I know, hard to imagine, right???) So, no biggie. The problem was, she was also horrible to the kids. Now, remember. These kids are FOUR years old. These kids are VERY low-income. These kids all have IEP's (meaning some sort of significant learning disability or challenge). THESE ARE FRAGILE KIDS WITH LIFE'S DECK STACKED AGAINST THEM.

And to these children, she said (all of these were either yelled or spoken in an icy, cold, you're-an-idiot tone of voice):

"What language do you even understand??"
"In Kindergarten, no one will help you open your milk or your lunch. You will have to do it all by yourself and not be such a baby."
"Hurry up!" (yelled over and over and over and over and over...)
"Why aren't you listening?"
"Go put that in your cubby. GO. Did you hear me? Do you understand? GO PUT THAT IN YOUR CUBBY!" (again, over and over and over to children whose mental capacity is extremely low and who barely understand English.

She NEVER said please. NEVER. She ordered the kids around all day in a stern voice.

She was completely annoyed all afternoon. She treated the kids (and me) like they were stupid. She constantly shouted at the kids for not doing things quickly enough.

The bottom line. While she never laid a hand on the kids, she beat them all day with her words and her tone. She is an unkind woman (after lunch). By the end of the day, the kids looked terrified and couldn't do a single thing without looking at Maggie to see if she approved.

So, I am going to the Sub office today to tell them and ask them what the protocol is for reporting her. She needs to be taken out of this class before she does any more damage to these precious, fragile, delicate and already-damaged children. I do not like confrontation, and I am terrified that this will be one. But sometimes you have to stand up for people who can't stand up for themselves. I teach that to Chase every day, and it's time for Chase's mama to practice what she preaches. This could go badly for me...but I hope clearer heads will prevail and she will be dealt with and removed from this class.

Say a prayer for me - I'm a peacemaker and this is not easy for me but she clearly hates the afternoon kids and something has to be done to protect them.

6 comments:

Shelly... said...

You are doing the right thing. Especially for a part of the population that doesn't have a voice. Hopefully, other people will realize that. Keep us posted.

Anonymous said...

I would request an appointment with the principal. That is the person who needs to hear what you have to say and has the power to make the most difference. Do not say why you want the appointment, just tell the secretary you want to set one up. They will not deny you that.

Anonymous said...

I think s.i.l. has a great idea for approaching this subject with the administration.

Surely, at the very least they could go and eaves drop and hear the same stuff you heard.

Anonymous said...

I'm proud of you, STQ! Doing the right thing even when it may turn out any number of ways.

Momsoon said...

I'm a bit behind on reading this. Hope you have that appt. with the principal coming up soon. Eager to hear the results.

Mouthy Girl said...

I'm a teacher. You already know this from reading my sub rant. I highly doubt that the school or district will do anything about this horrid woman.

I say call CPS. I have done it for more than one child in my career as a teacher. CPS listens when adminstrators who would rather play ostrich do not.

Her behavior was likely tempered because of your presence. That alone makes my hair stand on end and my stomach roil with vomit. She is an abuser who doesn't need to be near children. Any child. Ever.