*Before we go into this post, I want to be clear that Elliott wants me to share this personal journal entry of his. He hopes other kids will learn something from him*.
There's so much to catch you up on, and I'm trying to get there, but it's been one problem after another. This is something that I wanted to get out there for Elliott because it's important to him.
The other day, Elliott fell down the stairs at school. He banged his body up a little, and he's sore, but otherwise physically okay. The only reason I even found out about this, is because he was in tears when he climbed into the car after school.
I asked him what was wrong and he explained how he'd fallen down the stairs. According to him, only one person came to help him and see if he was okay, while the kids in his class just laughed and pointed.
I was pissed off when I heard this because I was hearing it from him and not from the school.
Kids can be assholes. They're gonna laugh at things like this, and I explained that to Elliott. It's not anything personal because if someone else had fallen, they'd likely be laughed at as well. Like I said, kids can be assholes.
I was upset because my son fell down the stairs at the beginning of the day and no one thought to call me. It doesn't need to be a dramatic event but a simple call informing me about what happen, how Elliott was doing and asking what I'd like to do. That should be protocol.
I've got a great deal of experience in things like this and school staff should not be making decisions about whether or not a child who falls down the stairs is okay and parents should be notified.
Secondly, he was hurt enough to need an ice pack, which amounts to providing medical treatment and I wasn't notified.
What had me peeved is that I get calls from the school when Elliott or Emmett have a bug bite that itches (that's totally true) but not when Elliott falls down the stairs. I wish WordPress allowed the use of an angry emoji because this definitely calls for one.
Before we left the parent pickup line, I called a staff member over and asked what had happened, but they didn't know anything about it.
Rather than fester, I focused on the fact that Elliott was physically okay and wanted to learn more about what exactly happened. Before we even got home, I called and asked the office what had happened. She briefly explained, and I inquired as to why I wasn't called. I didn't get an answer, but we now have an understanding that should anything like this happen again, Lizze or I need to be notified, and brought into the loop.
Like I said, just a simple heads up about what happened because it's really important to get their side of the story.
Neither of my kids are liars. They don't purposefully mislead anyone, and in Emmett's case especially, he's hardwired to be intolerant of falsehoods. He's always been like that, and we've figured it's just one of those Autism pieces that help to make up his personality.
In Elliott's case, he doesn't lie, but that doesn't mean he always correctly interprets situations or motives correctly, especially if emotions are involved.
Elliott is so hurt that everyone laughed at him when he fell because he couldn't even imagine doing the same thing to someone else. He would have been the first person to help and therefore expects that everyone else would do the same thing because it's the right thing to do.
Unfortunately, that's not the way the world works, and he's going to be disappointed a great deal if he doesn't somehow grasp that concept. I've had many conversations with him about this, but he just doesn't understand why people wouldn't do the right thing.
After we arrived home, he gave me a piece of paper that turned out to be a new journal entry for him. It was all about what happened at school and how it made him feel.
He wanted me to share this because he's hoping that people will learn something from his experience. If someone falls and gets hurt, he wants people to do the right thing, instead of laughing. At least make sure the person who fell is okay.
As a parent, I hate the idea of my kid's hurting, and I ask that you talk to your kids about what to do in situations like this.
Elliott is physically okay. He's sore, a little bruised but okay. Emotionally, he's disillusioned by how his classmates reacted to him falling down the steps. I can only continue to work with him on adjusting his expectations but this is how he perceives things, and I'm not sure there's a great deal I can do to help him.
As for the school, this has been resolved, and while I'm unhappy with how it was handled, I'm grateful for how they've responded to my concerns.
The principal caught up with me today and wanted to make sure I knew he had addressed this and agreed that I should have been called. That will be the approach going forward. I'm happy with that...
No one is perfect, least of all me. It's not the making of a mistake but rather the way in which that mistake is addressed, that matters to me.
Anyway, poor Elliott is still emotionally struggling from this whole thing, but we're working through it. You can tell he's carrying this with him because he's always at that threshold and it doesn't take much to send him into an emotional meltdown.
Spring break has started, and that will give him some time to work through this.
