Now, we go to swimming on Wednesdays.

[conuly]

Ana insists on changing in the women's locker room, because they have separate changing rooms. And last Wednesday a little first grader got herself locked in one of them. So here her sister is trying to calm her down, and trying to tell her dad what happened, and generally panicking (and, when she remembered, saying she didn't MEAN for this to happen! - I ended up telling her that not a one of us thought it was her fault or her sister's) while her sister freaked out in the changing room.

And every few minutes the older girl's father would call to her, and she'd go outside and get his sage advice: "Tell her to calm down!"

I didn't say anything, but what I wanted to tell him was, dude, your kid is NOT going to calm down because her sister tells her to, or because you tell her to. She's going to calm down when she's not locked in anymore! And every time you drag her sister away to tell her something inane like "Tell her to calm down!", you know what? YOU UPSET YOUR YOUNGER DAUGHTER! Because her sister is gone, and she can't see where she went!

I just don't understand what on earth he was thinking!

"Tell her to calm down." I can't imagine anything more worthless than that to say. Sheesh.

Comments

[ncp.livejournal.com]

In his defense, he was probably feeling pretty helpless and frantic. I know I would be if something like that happened to my son and I couldn't be there to help him.

[conuly]

That's one reason I didn't say anything to him after "You should fetch somebody, your daughter's locked in the changing room."

[sayga.livejournal.com]

lol, very true.

[diatryma.livejournal.com]

There's one kid whose particular behavior is getting really upset. We tell him that his job is to calm his body down. For anyone *not* in a behavior-focused classroom, though, it can be assumed that emotional reactions are appropriate and warranted.