Kid punished | Imamother

amother

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 7:29 pm

Please refrain from ranting about teachers and torture in the classroom.

My kid’s teacher allows them to drink from a water bottle on their desk. My kid finished theirs and was very thirsty. They raised their hand and asked if they can go fill it up from the water cooler in the back of the classroom. The teacher said no. There was a lot of time left to class so kid felt they could not wait so got up and refilled it anyway. Teacher sent them out of the room.

Do I address this? Do I just ignore because kid defied teacher so got a just punishment? What do I tell kid about the future how should they handle it?

amother

Marigold

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 7:40 pm

It's understandable that the teacher does not allow them to refill their water bottles during class as its very disruptive.
Part of learning responsibility is filling up your water bottle before class. If it was full at the beginning and then ran out of water chances are that she wasnt all that thirsty. There is no reason to drink that much assumig they also have recess and lunch.

amother

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 7:45 pm

They drank most of it on the long bus ride and arrived the same time as the teacher so did not have a chance to refill. It was the beginning of the day. They were thirsty the classroom is hot and dry with the heat. They did need a drink urgently that’s not something I’m debating. My question is in this case where they had no opportunity to refill before and did need the drink what was the right solution?

amother

Camellia

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 7:56 pm

No matter how badly they needed a drink, if they asked and were told no, the answer is no and they have to deal with the fallout for their behavior. Did the teachers have to say no? Probably no. Did they need a drink badly? For sure. Could they defy the teacher? No.
And once they heard no and did it anyways, it's called chutzpah.
And I might be dating myself, but For all our school years we sat without water bottles by our seats. And some years we didnt have air conditioners. This whole drinking in class phenomenon is rather new.

amother

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 7:58 pm

amother Camellia wrote:

We know more now and denying basic needs is really cruel. So that wouldn’t fly.

amother

NeonOrange

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:24 pm

amother OP wrote:

We know more now and denying basic needs is really cruel. So that wouldn’t fly.

It's not cruel to make her wait 20 minutes to drink.

It is rude to get up and walk around while the teacher is teaching. Teacher may find it distracting. To do so after teacher said no is not respectful.

I agree with letting it go.

amother

Holly

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:28 pm

I don't think the teacher did anything wrong by punishing your child for outright not listening to an instruction.
I also think it was ok for your child to make the decision that the drink was more important then the potential punishment.

Its like when you have an important package to drop off and the only place to stop your car is by a pump, you might do it knowing that if a police would pass by you would get a ticket. It might be worth it to take that risk.

amother

White

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:30 pm

amother OP wrote:

Definitely speak to the teacher. A thirsty child is always allowed to drink.

amother

White

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:32 pm

amother NeonOrange wrote:

Why are you more worried about a teachers perception of rude behavior versus a child’s thirst?
A child’s basic need comes first.

amother

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:35 pm

amother NeonOrange wrote:

Have you tried to do tedious work while very thirsty? It is cruel. And the teacher knows hence the policy to allow drinking. I don’t know that it’s that disruptive to walk quietly to the back of the room and fill it with water. Anyway they were getting their stuff out for the lesson so it wasn’t an actual disruption to the teacher.

notshanarishona

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:38 pm

I wouldn’t make such a big deal about it. Your daughter will learn either to bring enough water or fill up before class .
When a teacher says no it’s rude to get up anyway (unless a kid needs to pee and can’t wait). Drinking is not the same level of urgency.
Regardless of the debate of letting kids drink whenever they want, there is little reason that a healthy kid who just drank half a water bottle on the way to school is so thirsty that she can’t wait half an hour.
And before everyone screams what a mean teacher I am, I let my students drink water if they need to (but not to leave the room for it, they need to have a water bottle in their backpack if they want to drink).

amother

Teal

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:39 pm

amother OP wrote:

I mean they directly disobeyed the teacher. It sounds like you are convinced the teacher was wrong and your dc was right.

amother

Gardenia

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:42 pm

I don't think the teacher was in the right, basic needs are essential and we need to teach our children to listen to their bodies, but unfortunately I don't think addressing it with the teacher will be helpful. The punishment doesn't sound like it was too harsh, so I would let it go and get DD a bigger water bottle. If she's upset she was punished, validate her feelings and explain that some teachers tend to be a little too particular with their rules.

gr82no

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:43 pm

If your child just drank most of their water bottle on the way to school, they should not desperately need to drink more water even with the dryness.
Were talking about a middle school child they definitely can wait an hour.
Maybe the teacher should have let the child get water but once she says no thats it. Shes not wrong for saying but it would have been nicer.
We also dont kniw classroom dynamics and what exactly happened while filling up the water bottle, maybe some shmoozing etc happened

amother

White

Tue, Feb 06 2024, 8:43 pm

notshanarishona wrote:

But that’s unfair to the kids who didn’t have a water bottle. Parents are usually the reason why a kid does or doesn’t have a water bottle , so you’re punishing the kid whose parents aren’t on top of it. You should be allowing everyone to drink as needed.