More bad teaching.
By The Horse
@TheHorse (238268)
Walnut Creek, California
October 18, 2019 8:21pm CST
Did I mention that the #1 Teacher from Hell "quit" at the preschool where I work?
I am happy for the kids, but that damn "empathy" thing makes me hope she lands on her feet.
Today, I saw some more "bad teaching," but it was simply the result of a teacher not "listening in" to what the kids were doing.
My autism spectrum friend had been playing with Legos outside for about half an hour.
I was reading to some other kids about ten feet away, and he proudly told me that he had created a "cow."
I could see how his creation was a cow. There was a sloped surface involved that made his Lego creation look like a grazing cow.
It was time to go "inside" for snack, and the child was distressed because someone had "broken his cow."
The teacher said, "There are no cows there. These are Legos."
She did not consider that, in his imagination, he had created a cow with Legos.
After nap time, I said, to the child, "Are you going to make your cow again?" He gave me a hug.
To be an effective teacher of young children, you have to kick back and understand their fantasy lives.
It may not be a "cow" to you or I (me?), but if its a cow to a kid, then it's a cow.
28 people like this
28 responses
@LadyDuck (502148)
• Italy
19 Oct 19
If they cannot understand kids and they do not like to work with kids they should not become teachers. This is something I cannot understand, it's like doctors who consider that "all the patients are stupid and they invent diseases to annoy the doctors".
4 people like this
@Happy2BeMe (99353)
• Canada
19 Oct 19
She definitely shouldn't be a preschool teacher if she can't use her imagination with the children.
4 people like this
@wolfgirl569 (135583)
• Marion, Ohio
19 Oct 19
Glad she is gone.
You always agree with what the kid says they made. She should know that.
3 people like this
@andriaperry (118793)
• Anniston, Alabama
19 Oct 19
Yay! the witch is gone
I agree, its play time and you have to use your imagination.3 people like this
@andriaperry (118793)
• Anniston, Alabama
19 Oct 19
@TheHorse Not for me! I am a writer at heart, children`s book too, although I have not worked on that in years. When around children you see what they see, so you know when they say cow, its a cow.
5 people like this
@TheHorse (238268)
• Walnut Creek, California
19 Oct 19
@andriaperry Exactly! If it's a cow to them in that moment, it's a cow! As adults (especially as teachers) we're there to encourage their imaginations, not stifle them.
1 person likes this
@Starmaiden (9308)
• Canada
19 Oct 19
I wonder how she'll do as a mother. She obviously has no children yet.
3 people like this
@hereandthere (45628)
• Philippines
19 Oct 19
she probably expects everyone to be realists/adults whatever the age
2 people like this
@LovingMyBabies (85923)
• Valdosta, Georgia
19 Oct 19
Oh, it wasn't hard for her to pretend it was a cow for him. That's sad but glad you were there.
2 people like this
@Alexandoy (65302)
• Cainta, Philippines
19 Oct 19
Teaching is not mechanical. It is more of an observationary work.
3 people like this
@moffittjc (128824)
• Gainesville, Florida
19 Oct 19
I work with children on a daily basis, although in a recreation setting and not in a school setting. It's totally true that you have to think on their level. Even when I talk to kids, I will kneel down so I am at the same height is them. Less intimidating for kids, and it makes them feel important that I am trying to level the playing field by getting down and seeing them eye to eye.
2 people like this
@moffittjc (128824)
• Gainesville, Florida
19 Oct 19
@TheHorse I just think it makes the child feel important. Dealing with adults is intimidating enough, it's even worse when you have to look up to them because they are so tall!
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (238268)
• Walnut Creek, California
20 Oct 19
@moffittjc Yep. Children (like adults) love to be "heard." If you get down and listen to their story, they'll feel good about themselves.
1 person likes this
@LindaOHio (222222)
• United States
19 Oct 19
I'm glad the teacher quit. The teacher was wrong to say These are Legos. It stifles a child's imagination.
2 people like this
@TheHorse (238268)
• Walnut Creek, California
19 Oct 19
Yep. The teacher who made the little mistake yesterday is usually pretty good. Maybe she was flustered by the fact that it was a transition time. The one who quit was scary bad. I don't think I ever saw her show joy around a child's creation.
1 person likes this
@Michellekidwell (29953)
• Sonora, California
19 Oct 19
People that teach children and seem to lack caring, compassion and creativity get me mad, a child with an active imagination is a gift that should be encouraged!
2 people like this
@LeaPea2417 (40020)
• Toccoa, Georgia
19 Oct 19
Some people are not meant to teach. Sometimes, it takes a person to try it out before they realize they were not meant to teach. Then they can quit and go into something else.
1 person likes this
@LeaPea2417 (40020)
• Toccoa, Georgia
20 Oct 19
@TheHorse I hope so too. One of my Mom's long time friends , majored in education, taught school for one year back in the 60s, realized it was not for her, quit, pursued something else. She and her husband had no children. They have been married over 50 years, even though now the husband has some serious health issues.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (238268)
• Walnut Creek, California
20 Oct 19
@LeaPea2417 What did she pursue? I really enjoy chilling and playing with children.
1 person likes this
@1creekgirl (44560)
• United States
19 Oct 19
A classic example of that woman being in the wrong profession. Glad your little guy knew you knew it was a cow.
1 person likes this
@1creekgirl (44560)
• United States
19 Oct 19
@TheHorse I suspect that many little ones don't have a good male role model. I'm glad the good you are for the kids outweighs your desire for fame and fortune.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (238268)
• Walnut Creek, California
19 Oct 19
@1creekgirl Did you mention fame and fortune? I want to become famous for my incredible YouTube videos. Alas, I'm just another plugger.
1 person likes this
@akalinus (44366)
• United States
19 Oct 19
@TheHorse I don't know. I went to a teacher's conference to discuss my child's school problems. She told me all her problems. I heard about the bad finances, the crumbling marriage, the sick relatives, and the bad landlord. We never got around to talking about my kid.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (238268)
• Walnut Creek, California
19 Oct 19
I am really trying to figure out what's going on. ECE teachers...they're underpaid. But if they're under-trained, then do they deserve more pay? I DO believe (along with Freud) that the earliest years are essential in establishing a human being's self-esteem, personality, intellectual curiosity, etc.
1 person likes this
@petatonicsca (7070)
• Japan
22 Oct 19
Imagination is something teachers need to work with.
1 person likes this
@TheHorse (238268)
• Walnut Creek, California
22 Oct 19
Very true. Yesterday I played outside with a young friend (let's call her Camila). I was actually working in place of "Teacher from Hell #1," who had quit two weeks prior. Camila and I started building a house out of Legos together. She is three. I "scaffolded"(Vygotsky) a but when she struggled to the the Legos right, but I mostly let her learn by doing. Suddenly, she decided that we were making a farm. Another child brought some animals over from another area, and we wound up "experimenting" with how big a pasture we needed for our pig, cow, and T-Rex. I started a "garden," and the kids (there were three by this time) taught their animals to "share" food with each other. Had "Teacher from Hell" been there, she would have told the kids who brought the animals over that the animals stay in the animal are and the Legos stay in the Lego area. An opportunity would have been lost. When clean-up time came, Camila and I cleaned up the Legos and the two other kids present took the animals back to their "regular house." There were no "issues."
1 person likes this
