People Don’t Come With Instruction Books

          For the last two days I’ve accepted work assignments from two different schools to fill in for aides who have been given the assignment to keep an eye on specific students.  I feel for the students who are trying their best but allow themselves to get distracted by the one who is “unique” or has “special needs” and may be treated with “kid gloves” when they, themselves are not and wonder why a certain classmate is allowed to get away with things that they cannot.

          I understand the need to allow a “special needs” to have the same opportunity as those who are considered the norm.  I think it equally important for the “norm” to be exposed to “special needs” as they learn about discipline, social skills and other things that are not a part of academics but still need to be learned.  But at whose expense?

          Though the student body is less populated than the area that we had moved from five years ago, the class sizes are huge in size for lack of teachers and/or space.  Many kids need more personal attention than given – though the system does its best to accommodate.  There seems to be a fine border between education and discipline.  The schools, desperate for teachers, have hired many that have not been trained in finding tricks in order to discipline.

          Still, no one method is going to work for every student – just as no one method will work on each child in any given family.  It doesn’t seem to matter how small or large the family is, there seems to always be at least one that will move to the beat of a different drummer.  I know that whatever method of discipline I may have used on Tony would not work on Randy and vice-versa.  Two totally separate personalities with different thought process and ways of learning.

          Jenna hates having group projects in which children are assigned to work together.  I hated that, too.  But I do get it.  We need to have good communication skills to get things accomplished as adults.  It’s better to learn how to be a team player at a young age than try to apply it to one’s job or career responsibility later on down the road.  “Kid gloves” shouldn’t even be an issue in the workplace – and yet there are some companies that seem to skirt around them. 

          How much further ahead are those who allow God to be a part of our lives and include Him in everyday decisions.  Communication is essential. Frustration occurs when we don’t, won’t or aren’t able to communicate.