Monday, November 17, 2008

Monday Night Thoughts about Silliness and It's Impact

Both of our boys are somewhat silly, but in very different ways.

Noah's is more of a show-offy kind of way that often drives us insane. He is smart beyond all measure, but sometimes resorts to inappropriate humor to try to get attention. This is something we are working with him on daily and hopefully can get a handle on it before it becomes detrimental to him in the friend making process. As of now, he has lots of friends and is known as the "second funniest in the class" and he is quite proud of this label.

Aaron is just plain silly. He has an infectious smile that you can't help but notice from a million miles away. It stands out in a crowd.

The fact that he has such a vibrant joyfulness about him is a trait that I hope will always serve him well, even if he has other struggles (which are just starting to try to surface).

Last week at Aaron's preschool conference, I was not surprised by anything the teacher said. We had spoken the week before on what she deems are "concerns" about Aaron. Nothing that I think are a big deal right now because he is indeed young and I plan to hold him another full year and not send him to kindergarten until he is almost six.

But something really bothered me afterward and I couldn't quite put my finger on it. I thought about it more the next day and it has been on my mind ever since.

As I stated above, Aaron exudes an extremely cheerful personality. Anyone who meets him for 30 seconds can notice it. He is excited about pretty much anything. But at this conference, the teacher mentioned NOTHING about this trait. As a matter of fact, she stated nothing in regards to positive traits he displays in the classroom at all.

Even when Noah struggled behaviorally in preschool and kindergarten, his teachers started the conference talking about the positive things they noticed about him in class. Aaron's conference started late and was rushed to end on time since the parent behind me was a teacher and had "limited time" but it was ALL BUSINESS about the things they tested him on and how he was doing according to the printed out report she had filled out.

I understand all business. But like I said, anyone who spends more than a minute around Aaron notices his zest for life. Why wouldn't this teacher have said SOMETHING about his happiness or exuberance, or any kind of positive trait he is showing in the classroom. The few times I have visited, I haven't noticed anything stand out as troublesome, but I am still very uneasy about this.

I don't really have much else to say about it. Just a thought that has been on mind for several days now.

Because of this post being about Aaron's silliness, I think I will lighten it up with a moment that made me laugh hysterically a few days ago.

Aaron found one of Steve's hats and put it on his head and said out of the blue...




"Look, I'm Uncle Matt!"















I guess you wouldn't understand why this so funny if you don't know my brother. So let me clue you in on the joke. Here is a picture of my brother with Noah several years ago donning his usual head wear on a summer's day




















Look familiar. Even though my husband Steve has been wearing this hat ever since Aaron was a baby, the first thing Aaron said when he put it on was that he was just like Uncle Matt.

It made me laugh.

Happy Tuesday.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Can you schedule another conference with the teacher when she would have more time to spend with you? It might be worth it to put your mind at ease!

Courtney said...

I second imadramamama's comment. Btw, I could have written this post. Taylor is just like Noah and Callee like Aaron! Maybe it's a 1st and 2nd child thing.

Deb said...

I wonder too, from what you've said about his teacher and how the conference went. Ugh - so hard to know the best thing to do with these kinds of things!

Aaron is, I think, the most cheerful kid I know. :)

Cynthia said...

Wow, that would bother me too...

Cute pics:)

www.frogparenting.blogspot.com said...

I can relate SO much to this post--

There is such a difference between pre-school pre-K and
Public school kindergarten --
It used to be all about our kids and what they are achieving, now it's all about comparing our kids to all the others--and being a part of the group.

One teacher I had for my daughter was super positive and her current teacher is also--
but -- it's sad I can't say that for the other teachers she has had since starting Public school.

I have learned that taking a friend ,or even my husband if he isn't working, with me to a meeting, helps the teacher to not be so negative.(sometimes)

But I have also found out that it is good to take notes before and after, so that you can look back and re-visit the comments that were made.

Anonymous said...

I have the same problem regarding my youngest son's teacher. She complains about how hyper he is, and then she brings up meds, and I told her how trying meds messed with his happy, optimistic mood. She looked at me like "what happy mood?". Maybe around her he is ISN'T happy!

Debbie @ Three Weddings said...

I agree. She really should have discussed the positive items about Aaron as well. Obviously the point of a conference is to cover any areas that need attention, but teachers really need to talk about the positives. They are our children, afterall, and we love them. We know they have faults, but we love them nonetheless.