Mama bear wants to roar
My daughter is a precious little snowflake. (Yes, like all other people's precious kids. I know. But she is mine, and therefore even more precious. Got it? Good.)
I dropped her off at her summer program this morning, and I offered to help her put her backpack down so she could grab breakfast and eat quickly before she has to get on the bus to summer school. (It's a new thing they're doing this year, I think it's stupid, but she HAS to go to summer school if she's part of this particular summer program, no exceptions.) When I turn around, she's right there next to me yanking on her shirt, looking down and sullen and won't make eye contact. I try to fix her shirt and ask her what's wrong, and she told me some other kid told her that she's not supposed to wear her swim suit (there's swimming in the afternoon). He had laughed, and she felt bad about it. I told her that it was fine, if the kid made other comments like that later, tell him that *I* said it's okay. I told her he was being a bully and that she was a cool kid.
No eye contact, and she shook her head.
I know, I know, I'm an adult and a medical professional. I treat kids. But holy god, I wanted to pound this kid into a bloody pulp just then. I kept it together and reminded her that bullies like to make other kids upset, and that she's a good kid, and she should ignore him. I had her point him out to me, and she ate her food and didn't even give me a hug goodbye, she was that upset. I didn't take it up with the counselors yet, since I don't know if it's an isolated incident and she's just oversensitive, or if this kid really is a bully and picking on Maddy. I mean, she was once so upset about some teasing a friend made about a shirt that she literally never wore it again even though she had liked that shirt until the comment was made.
My growly overprotective mama bear instincts are out, though. I was teased mercilessly throughout my entire elementary school career, into my junior high years. I loathed the social aspect of school and if I had known about home schooling I would've begged for that option. I loved learning, I hated my bitter teachers and the kids that made my life a living hell until eighth or ninth grade. (I say or, because it got less in eighth grade but didn't stop until they switched schools in ninth). I am not going to let my daughter go through the same hell.
Grrrr.
I dropped her off at her summer program this morning, and I offered to help her put her backpack down so she could grab breakfast and eat quickly before she has to get on the bus to summer school. (It's a new thing they're doing this year, I think it's stupid, but she HAS to go to summer school if she's part of this particular summer program, no exceptions.) When I turn around, she's right there next to me yanking on her shirt, looking down and sullen and won't make eye contact. I try to fix her shirt and ask her what's wrong, and she told me some other kid told her that she's not supposed to wear her swim suit (there's swimming in the afternoon). He had laughed, and she felt bad about it. I told her that it was fine, if the kid made other comments like that later, tell him that *I* said it's okay. I told her he was being a bully and that she was a cool kid.
No eye contact, and she shook her head.
I know, I know, I'm an adult and a medical professional. I treat kids. But holy god, I wanted to pound this kid into a bloody pulp just then. I kept it together and reminded her that bullies like to make other kids upset, and that she's a good kid, and she should ignore him. I had her point him out to me, and she ate her food and didn't even give me a hug goodbye, she was that upset. I didn't take it up with the counselors yet, since I don't know if it's an isolated incident and she's just oversensitive, or if this kid really is a bully and picking on Maddy. I mean, she was once so upset about some teasing a friend made about a shirt that she literally never wore it again even though she had liked that shirt until the comment was made.
My growly overprotective mama bear instincts are out, though. I was teased mercilessly throughout my entire elementary school career, into my junior high years. I loathed the social aspect of school and if I had known about home schooling I would've begged for that option. I loved learning, I hated my bitter teachers and the kids that made my life a living hell until eighth or ninth grade. (I say or, because it got less in eighth grade but didn't stop until they switched schools in ninth). I am not going to let my daughter go through the same hell.
Grrrr.