It has been a hard road. One of my students who I
will name Shamus Potter, has really tested me to the brink of quitting.
First off, he has been diagnosed with ADHD which is
attention deficit disorder. His behavior shows some of the hallmark symptoms.
He is a virtual human ball bouncing off the classroom walls.
Secondly, his behavior has gone way beyond his
diagnosis of ADHD. He is disrespectful and a bully. He is aware of what he is
doing.
Before anyone goes rattling off any negativity, read
the following first:
First, I am not being highly specific due to
confidentiality. Someone may be reading this and may recognize the specific
child. I have to watch my words a bit. The
descriptions are accurate and did happen.
Second, I have limited experience working with
special needs children. I have a lot of frustration due to my inexperience.
As I was saying . . . .
This child refuses to listen. He will not walk in
line with his classmates. He runs up and down the hall as we leave from and
come to our class room. 9 out of 10 he will NOT sit in circle time. He will
find something else to do just to aggravate his classmates and his teachers.
My classroom is the 4th one he has been
in since he started preschool. His behavior is THAT bad. It has gone from being
an issue to a severe problem. All children have some type of issue(s) which is
correctable. Problems surface when there is NO consistency, parenting, or
otherwise correctable action taking place.
He has threatened to shoot his classmates and the
police. He has threatened to stab a teacher in the stomach. He will hit, kick,
and punch his classmates if he does not get his way. He has hit me on several
occasions, pulled on my clothes, and bit me on one occasion.
He has ran outside to the playground on several
occasions. We and others have had to go get him. The other students suffer when
we have to get him inside.
He is smart. He tends to ramble from one thought to
another, patterns are always different. He will talk about doing harm to his
mom, one of us, or one of the students.
This is just a small part in what has happened in
the four months I have worked in this classroom. I am very concerned about him
going to Kindergarten. Will he hurt someone? How long will he stay before he
gets kicked out of school?
The biggest kicker is his mom. Shamus Potter’s
pediatrician diagnosed him and prescribed medication for him. His mom gave us
(the school) his medication. He only got it when he was at school (Monday –
Friday). Holidays and weekends he never got his medication. His mother needs to
get her head out of the sand to the critical situation.
Now, I do have a few pieces of advice. First is
consistency in his schedules, routines, and discipline. Second is disciplining
him to the fullest and consistently never surrendering control. Third is to
make sure he takes his medication. The pediatrician prescribed the medication
for this child to help him, not to label. Lastly, his mother needs to stop
worrying so much about “labeling’ and be proactive. His mother needs to
schedule a meeting with the principle, guidance counselor, teachers, and the
special needs coordinator at her child’s new school to discuss her child’s
behavior. This is an act of being proactive. The school can assist her and her
child to be successful in school. Without this, the school is gonna get bombed
with this hellion child.
After all the crazy negative, I still care about Shamus Potter!
