The college staff is on Spring Break this week so we Old Timers have been covering their hours. I’m still at work the normal amount of time, but the last couple of hours is with the children and not my various odd jobs. I am a little zonked out and can’t think of a good post.
Every so often on my pocket list, I write down topics that I think about writing about. Today’s were: Not a fan of mean funny and Fixer vs. Destroyer. Let’s see what I can blab about tonight.
I helped with the before-school big kids today and there was a lot of good-natured goofing around, but a couple of instances of kids being annoying or unkind. I gave my standard ‘state the facts’ – “Colin, your face is right by his face,” followed by the clarification/chance to stop being a jerk – “Did you mean to have it so close? Because that looks like it’s bothering him.” (There is more to it, but that’s the jist.) Mostly it stopped the shenanigans, but there are a couple of boys who thrive on cruelty as humor. I am not a fan. Kids (or grown-ups) who think ‘mean is funny’ bother me. Not a fan of put-downs or name-calling for humor’s sake.
Regarding the Fixers vs. Destroyers, that’s about how I get SO CRAZY about the kids taking care of the toys, books and furniture. I have a ‘Crashers and smashers will be excused’ sign posted in blocks because then I don’t have to scold kids when they are throwing my stuff around, I just say, “Wow. What did I just see?”
“Crashing.”
“What does the sign say?”
“Crashers and smashers will be excused.” Then they go. (Sorry, kid, it’s the sign’s fault. Sorry it’s such a buzzkill.)
Anyway, I don’t let them scoot the little bench around on the carpet/ lean back in chairs/ drive Hot Wheels cars on the shelves/ use the play saw on the table/ try to cut the pencils with scissors/ bend books/ hang on the fence/ etc. – basically, I am Zero Fun (as I’m always saying to the aides). And why is that? Because I am the one who has to fix the stuff when it’s broken, that’s why.
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Ok, neither of those ideas turned out like I thought they would. I’ll have to run them by my editor sometime and re-write.
(Want to be my editor?)