spunky hanky-panky cranky stinky dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey
So incase you weren't on my immediate texting list, I got a job a few weeks ago at a nearby preschool doing a certificate III traineeship.
And I love it. I miss the kids so much on the weekend, and their cuddles and their smiles and, yes, even their tears. But today was probably my worst day yet.
To avoid getting fired, electric chaired, etc, I'm using nicknames.
So today Gurgle, an around-11-month-old boy, was in for his fourth-ish day in the centre. He cries a lot when he's here, but I can usually stop him. The thing is that the others frown on continually coddling (for want of a better word), so I tried to let him cry himself calm if that makes sense. But he was crying basically the entire day, crawling after me and clinging onto my leg and pants and hands and trying to get a cuddle. I'd be sitting on the opposite side of the room and he'd crawl over to me, wanting to just sit in my lap, but then Bubbles and Hula (teachers - dodge nicknames I know) would come over and tell him to stop crying because I wouldn't be giving him any cuddles. By this point he was crying hard enough to make himself sick and I just had to keep leaving him to cry, which was one of the hardest things I've ever done. In group time later that morning he was able to sit on my lap, and he calmed down straight away.
My lunch break I forgot to bring my food, so I sat on the oval for half an hour before heading back. And I can admit I cried a lot in my lunch break, so much so I just considered not returning.
The people are nice. And they mean well. I get that I've only been there a few weeks, but I know that their attitudes are negatively affecting the kids, and that sucks. Everyone's gossiping a lot of the time, about each other as well as parents. And Bubblegum, the director, is quite passive aggressive.
Jumping Jack (JJ) is a kid in the older room. I guess he's five now... He's such a sweet kid. Seriously. He's so lovely. But he was crying today and once again I was able to do nothing. He's a sensitive kid, and he was crying for over an hour after he was told off for something he did. And I understand that he did something wrong and needed to be told off, but the way that he was treated after he started crying... I thought it was wrong. Because I know from personal experience, that when someone tells you to stop crying, the odds are not good. And when someone yells at you to stop crying, and lectures you some more, then the odds are even worse. And then when Bubbles calls out in a loud voice to the entire playground "JJ, are you still crying? My goodness, you're being silly! Miss Skirttails, JJ is still crying!..." etc, etc... I mean, what is that going to achieve?
So I tried to calm him down, saying stuff like, "you know you're okay. You're alright. Just take a deep breath," stuff like that, only for Bubbles and Skirttails to make more comments which inevitably made him cry more.
I ended up telling him that it was okay to cry sometimes, and I told him I'd cried at lunch. Not sure if that was the best thing to do career-wise, but I had to do some cleaning and when I returned he'd gone home so I don't know if he stopped crying. I guess I'll find out tomorrow.
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