It's Hard

Teaching is hard work. Teaching Preschool is even harder. Let me share with you some bullet points about why I believe this to be true.

• For many families, this is their first public school experience. Even if it's not, the teachers vary from year to year with the high rate of teacher turn-over.
• There are rules, policies, and expectations that need to be enforced for the safety, protection, and education of all.
• It's a learning curve for everyone; students, their families, the teachers, the school, the bus drivers, the custodians, the cooks, the school nurses, etc. Every child that walk through the school doors has their own uniqueness about them. EVERY.ONE.OF.THEM. Let that soak in for a second; 300-500 unique people all in one place, for 7 ½ to 8 hours each day.

Hear me out. We WANT your kids in school. We look forward to seeing their smiling faces each day. We look forward to the stories the share with us and their bright, eager, ready-to-learn faces. Here's the thing, though; not at the expense of the other children entrusted to our care each day. That's where the policies and procedures come into play.

The school district and it's board of education have put into place a huge notebook of policies and procedures that make the day-to-day functioning of the district's buildings as fair and as equitable as humanly possible. It is the responsibility of the classroom teachers to, besides teaching your children, enforce these policies. No ifs, and, or buts. A great deal of time, effort, and discussion was put into making these policies. They are not up for interpretation. They are there for the safety and protection of the students. Period.

So, if a parent receives a call from the nurse's office, saying that their child is running a fever, the correct response is, “I'll be right there.” The policy says “fever/symptom free, without medication.” That doesn't mean a parent can give the child a fever-reducer and send them to school. That medication will wear off before the end of the day, and the parent will receive a call to come and get the child. It also doesn't mean, when you come to pick your child up, you ask if they're sure they're sick. They are running a fever. They are going home. It's the policy.

Here's where communication comes into play. If the parent has a child who typically runs a normal temperature higher than 98.6., tell someone-the nurse or the teacher. If the child has an inhaler or epi-pen at school, the teacher should know that, as well. If the student has been on an antibiotic for an ear infection, strep, etc., let the teacher know. Teachers are not mind readers. Parents need to communicate with their child's teacher, not post a rant on social media.

Parents! You know your child better than any teacher could ever hope to. However, you have to communicate with the teacher so that he/she can be the best teacher possible for your child. If your child has had a rough night, tell the teacher. If the child is pretending to be sick so they can come home, tell the teacher. If the child is struggling with a peer, tell the teacher. Sometimes there are things we miss. It's human nature.

Bottom line: We're all on the same page, only wanting the best for each student in our classroom. Teaching is hard. Not only do we teach the child, we teach the parents, too. This is a partnership and will be for the rest of the child's formal education. The sooner we all work together as a team, the better it will be for all of us.