Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Old Habits are Hard to Break

Yesterday I took a quick glance at my email and saw one from the Guidance Goddess with the subject line of "Bully Boy".

Uh-oh.

I opened it up. All it said was "He's back!"

Oh crap.

I quickly forwarded it to The Team and they pretty much had the same response. Bully Boy was, to be honest, responsible for about 25% of the discipline referrals on our team, and with him gone, things were a lot calmer. Amazing how one kid can really stir the pot.

But he was back. And usually when a kid returns, he's put back on the same team with the same schedule. Figures. Just when my Fifth Period was actually getting somewhat sane and they were able to sit through an entire class period without a ruckus.

So, during lunch, Mrs. Social Studies, Ms. Language and I went to find out what was going on and to beg, if need be, that he be put on another team. He was back, with mom, and they were both living with grandma. Apparently they had been tossed out of their apartment in the nearby city (I'm not sure where the information came from but the words "meth use" or "meth manufacture" were mentioned and neither would surprise me considering his parents' history). And, surprisingly, Mr. Enforcer actually did put him on another team. His idea was that Bully Boy had pretty much tormented every kid in our area of the school and putting him on a team that was in a more enclosed area, like Mr. Social Studies and Mrs. Bunny's team, would be ideal. It could be watched more closely.

We groveled at Mr. Enforcer's feet and praised him to the heavens for this wise act.

We then informed his new team not to worry, it would only be a matter of time before he'd be in ISS or suspended. We did warn them to keep their eyes on him at all times (remember, he's a thrower) and to make sure he is nowhere near smaller kids or sped kids. We also warned them that lunch could be an issue as he likes to mess with kids then, as well, especially with slaps to the back of the head. Obviously, this team was less than thrilled. However, considering that our team is leading the entire school with discipline referrals and seats in alternative school, it's time to spread the wealth around.

So today, twenty-four hours later, we are walking our kids back from lunch and as we go by Mr. Enforcer's office (which is right smack in the middle of our team area), we see, of all people, Bully Boy sitting in his office.

Amazing! It only took a day and a half before he'd landed in trouble.

He apparently decided to pick on one of their smaller, and I mean small kids, a little thing who may weigh sixty pounds if he's lucky. It happened at lunch and the end result is he got mad at the Little Tyke, and smashed his hand on the table. Mr. Duck and I saw the videotape (amazing how Bully Boy always gets into trouble right in front of a camera) and it's the same mean kid I knew from before. He even has the same mannerisms of looking all around him for an authority figure to make sure they aren't watching before he launches his attacks. Apparently he keeps forgetting about the cameras that keep filming his misdeeds.

Of course Mr. Enforcer couldn't get a hold of a parent or adult at any of the phone numbers listed on the emergency card to inform them that he'd be in ISS for five days.

Some things never change.

7 comments:

Mrs. T said...

Can't stand kids like that! Funny, however, that he does all of his misdeeds in front of security cameras. Duh!

nbosch said...

What I think is sad is that there isn't a place where he CAN go to school, rather than plop him back into a situation where obviously he didn't have a whole lot of success. Without SERIOUS intervention he's just going to end up in jail--another statistic.

Farnnay said...

aww man, hes back!? good luck.

and awesome blog btw :)

The Bus Driver said...

in a way i feel bad for him because the poor kid just doesnt have a good home life... so school is where he can feel most in control.

on the other hand..... a half day must be a record!

Tracey said...

I stumbled across your blog and now that I have I don't feel alone! Thanks...

W.R. Chandler said...

At what point does expulsion enter the picture? I would think that parent lawsuits concerning this kid could also be a possibility?

The purposeful act of looking around first for any authority figure sent a chill down my spine. What a sociopath.

Mrs. Bluebird said...

Sociopath is right Chanman. And your question highlights a huge beef I've had for the past few years as my team seems to get all the crazies. We are continually getting these kids, but they don't stay around long enough to get processed through the system to test for emotional disturbances. They have parents who can't keep a stable home for these kids so they bounce from school to school to school. I've talked with our guidance folks and this is a real concern but right now there's nothing in place, legally, where we can put these kids in the ED unit as soon as they show up. It will, sadly, take a lawsuit, but unfortunately parents of good normal kids don't have a PAC.