Miles is halfway through the fourth grade, which has been pretty good for him. Now that he’s back in school after a long holiday break, some of his old behaviors have temporarily re-emerged. He gets frustrated when class sections last longer than expected, and he also gets agitated when he doesn’t immediately understand a new topic. Not a good combination for this week, in which some new math concepts and cursive handwriting have been introduced.
Yesterday his teacher reported that he had used some inappropriate language to express his displeasure with the day’s work, so when we got home, I asked him what he said.
“I used the c word, the f word, and the s word.”
I thought “He called his teacher a cunt? That will have to be dealt with,” but I asked him “What’s the c word?”
“You know – ‘crap’ – I know it’s not allowed.”
Greatly relieved, I maintained my stern expression while agreeing “You’re right, it’s not allowed. The classroom is not the place for that kind of language.”
Sooner or later he may wind up with a teacher he may want to describe as a cunt. But, thankfully, not yet.