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Case: The Newcomer Ivan came to my 5th grade classroom two weeks ago. He moved to the United States with his parents about a month ago from Russia. Both of his parents are graduate students at the local university. Ivan speaks no English at all. There are no other Russian speakers in our school, so I cannot use a translator when I try to communicate with Ivan. So, I decided that I would give him time learn some English through everyday interactions with me and his classmates. Two days ago I heard Ivan using the "F-word" repeatedly on the playground and in the classroom. I do not exactly know how he learned the word but my guess is that one of his classmates taught it to him as a joke. I have to address this problem. I have to find a way to explain to Ivan that this word is not acceptable. I also have to find out who taught this to him. I cannot allow these types behaviors in the classroom. I am not sure if I should involve the parents. I need to do something, but what? Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!) Most children don't know a word is a bad word until they see someone's reaction. They are not born to say bad words. They learn from the actions of other people. They can see and hear a lot of things other people are doing. I would not yell at a child for swearing, because I don't think yelling would solve anything. It's never okay to label a child bad. It's the behavior that may be an issue. If I heard a student of mine using curse words, I would take the opportunity to address the issue to the whole class. I won't mention the student's name. I would like to discuss with the class that we will not be talking like that here at school. Some words can really hurt someone's feelings. Just because you may hear a particular word being used, that doesn't mean it is okay to say to someone. |
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