The Child Find/Early Intervention screening went off without a hitch I guess. Sloane did her thing and I waited in the waiting room. It took all of an hour and there was great people watching. I love people watching. It is so fun to watch the world go on around you! Today, I did some people watching, but I did more parenting watching.
I am not and would never claim to be an excellent, perfect, fabulous or any other superlative parent. I am doing a good job, I think, but it is a work in progress every minute of everyday. This is my first rodeo!! Some days, I have not a clue what to do with my daughter's behaviors and other days I am nipping them in the butt before they get started. There is one piece of parenting I do know something about because of my educator background....consequences. I was kind of known as a hard ass teacher....priding herself on structure, routine and discipline. Let's just say...kids weren't exactly excited to have me as their teacher at the beginning of the year, but loved it by the end for the most part I think.
After 17 years in the classroom and 10 of those being with special needs children, I learned a bit behaviors. Call it "field training". I try very hard to always give Sloane a do-able consequence. I do not go for the unattainable or big guns because I know there will be no follow-thru and I will lose my credibility as "the boss"..... hahaha
Today, I watched a perfect example of no follow-thru. Sloane's screen was held in the local elementary school with many preschoolers from our city. Next to me, was a couple about my age with their son. He had done 1 part of the screening and was waiting to be called again when he started not skipping, not jogging, not twirling but racing down the school's corridors. His parents called for him many a times from their seats on the bench...never moving. The little lad continued to pretend the halls were his raceway and ignored their calls. I was watching carefully...thinking about how I would have scooped Sloane up by now and exited her into a quiet corner for an eye to eye chat about the no running policy. If you get my drift.......When Sloane is acting fresh, I like to exit the location, take her audience away and chat with her quietly, sternly and hopefully, if I haven't lost my mind....like a parent to child :)
Now, as the roadrunner was making his way thru the halls, neither parent moved until 10 call outs were made. At that point, the dad picked the boy up without a word and plopped him in his mom's arms while he screamed over and over something that sounded like "put me down". Dad never spoke and mom remained calm and asked him over and over to stop being bad.....(as I side note, I am not a fan of "stop being bad") while he kicked her and screamed louder. And then it happened, she said "do you want to leave?" This is all happening while the mom is sitting, not moving with her cell phone in her hand. What, I thought??? This is the Early Intervention state mandated screening...you cant leave...he isn't done yet!! Why on earth would that be the consequence for this behavior and why are you asking him??? No warning, no expectations, just a big gun consequence! Not good I thought. This isn't going to go well....and it didn't. For the next 3-5 minutes, the screaming continued and the mom continued to threaten him with a punishment?? of leaving that wasn't going to happen. Meanwhile, of course, he wants to leave....this wasn't exactly a day at the playground!! Strangers are asking him to do things that may be hard for him or even confusing. What fun is that for a 3 year old??? The big gun consequence was never going to happen.... I felt bad for this little guy! He needed some structure, some consequences and at the very least to know his parents were in charge.
Sloane finished her screening and joined me in the waiting room. I have no idea how she did. Ill assume just fine as I don't see any red flags yet. While we left, the roadrunner came out from his next screening and hit the hallways like he was Carl Lewis in the 1,00 meter dash! Guess, he wasn't leaving the screening early!!
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