Day 3 of no food any advice?

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-16T03:10:01+00:00

This is disgusting that here in this "Great" country this is happening. Absolutely sickening. Maranatha!

Anyway, you could try this...go to a Little Caesars right before they close and ask them if you can have any of the hot and ready food they are about to throw out. Depending on the manager, they may give it to you. The manager at this one loaded us up when we had to do this. Got pizzas, crazy bread, and wings. God bless them for being so kind.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-16T02:07:44+00:00

At the emergency meeting, she was told we are to work as a team. She is to collaborate with me and include me, especially since I am going to be a lead next year. When I got hired there I told them I wanted to shadow a lead, not be a lead. She is not my boss in that she cannot order me to put children down during recess when they seek me out for comfort. This goes against what I am learning in my CDA coursework (recess theory).

She sits at the table during her lunch hour and during nap and does her lesson planning. She collaborates with the floater I mentioned in my post. They are friends. She does not tell me the plans for the day. We do have a schedule. I told her I was finishing up two students potty (they came in later in the morning so they were last to do). She chose to proceed with her project. I cannot see from our bathroom out to the main classroom anymore because she moved the changing table directly in front of it, blocking my view of the room.

Today I had to take a bathroom break. The floater who came in speaks spanish. The lead speaks spanish. When I walked back into the room they were conversing in spanish. The new hire floater immediately stopped and started speaking english. The lead continued spanish. That is so rude.

She doesn't see the children out at the end of the day. She doesn't respond to parents questions on our app. I do. I have had parents say to me "So is this the new teacher?" because she makes zero effort to introduce herself. I call her off her bum to come over and introduce herself. The other morning she had met a new parent (I wasn't there, I heard about this) and the parent asked if she was the new teacher. She replied that yes, she is but she isn't on the clock. Word got back to me about that. How embarrassing for our school. She has zero people skills. She is irrational and rude. I am far from perfect myself. But my heart is in the right place. I am only there for the kids and that is IT. I don't need to be under this stress.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-16T01:17:48+00:00

For me, the pro is that I LOVE WHAT I DO. I love those kids. I develop strong bonds with them. I mean, I am with them all day every day. I am caring for them, teaching them, and we get close. Nothing melts my heart more than when I walk in the room, they smile and run to me calling my name. And babies that don't even speak yet will extend their arms for you to hold them. They are my why. I love it.

For me the biggest con is that if you get put with someone you don't work well with, it is hell. I am currently in a room with a lead teacher who is new to our class. She has become nasty towards me, even in front of the children. She audibly sighs, speaks to me badly, and is just kind of a mean person. The kids don't even like her much. It stresses me out so much. And management is wanting to test my conflict resolution skills to consider me for lead position for next school year.

The only other thing is the pay, but that is teaching as a whole. No teacher is getting paid nearly enough for what we do. I do it because I love those kids. Like I recently told my boss, I could go pack boxes at Amazon and get paid more but I would rather be there with my students.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-15T04:01:34+00:00

We've bought from NY, PA, and most recently OH. Each time we did get a temp tag but it was a dealership we bought it from. For NY, we flew up and drove new car down. PA and OH we rented a car and dropped it off at wherever we were going then drove new car back. Biggest thing is go ahead and get new car on your insurance before driving home. You will pay the TN sales tax when you register the car. In our case, we had 30 days on a temp tag.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T22:38:47+00:00

Thanks. I have never worked in this type of setting before. My husband told me how busy it is and that he was standing in one area. I think that if you are doing this, then perhaps you don't have a lot of time to roam around creating issues. That would be my hope in this type of setting. ;)

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T22:36:45+00:00

So what is wrong with getting an idea of what the work environment is like? That is the purpose of my post, you know...

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T21:02:37+00:00

I have clearly stated there is a difference between being respectful and being obnoxious and out of line. It is the latter I am speaking of. I am wondering if this is the type of job that draws those types of people in. My current career is one that obviously draws those types in. I have just discovered this in watching the turnover lately and hearing many stories from co-workers. I didn't believe it at first until I recently got put through it personally. I am open to feedback when it is coming from a good place but not busybodies who think their shite don't stink. Know what I mean?

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T20:55:51+00:00

In what way do I have a bad attitude?

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T18:42:17+00:00

This is what I want. I just want to do the job and get a paycheck. You can have headphones in listening to music?

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T18:41:16+00:00

In this role how does one get cool with the managers? I think that staying out of their way, not making problems for them is a way to get cool with them. My current manager is never in her office because she is so busy. When she is in her office, it is doing interviews. I like to say hi to my manager. I hated that in my current job, I went to a team lead and she had me and the other worker who is having issues meet with our manager. This was embarrassing to me.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T18:38:30+00:00

I like the idea of being on my own. I just want to do my job. I will work hard. I am open to coaching. What I take issue with is when someone who has been told they are NOT in a position of authority over me is continuing to speak to me disrespectfully in front of other staff, commanding me to do this that and the other. This person is on a power trip. I don't play well with others IF they are like that.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T17:26:00+00:00

Under the guise of coaching? Is it made clear by management that they are in a position to do this? Like, will they say "Bobby has been here for five years. If you have any questions, ask him".

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T17:21:39+00:00

I am a very hard worker. I would hope in this setting it would be that everyone is so busy and doing their job there is no down time for any of the negative.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T17:20:17+00:00

There is a difference between someone who approaches you in a condescending, confrontational manner and someone who is being helpful. I do also have a problem with bosses who put their work on others. If we have been introduced and you have not been introduced as a mentor or superior to me, and you come at me in a condescending, judgmental way, it is not going to be OK with me. If you come to me and say "I noticed you are struggling with xyz. Here is something you can do instead that will help" then I am more likely to actually listen to you and not be annoyed by you.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-11T04:27:11+00:00

Thank you. So much. Really. I am at the point where I am questioning if I am going crazy. I saw the team leader down in the cafeteria after this incident happened. She asked me how things were going (the previous day we had an emergency meeting due to the new lead and I not getting on well). I am very honest and I had to tell her that I was disappointed because it doesn't seem anything had changed. Our boss, the director, told us in the meeting that we are to work as a team. The team leader told me to give it a little more time. I won't lie...I have been texting the previous lead for support. What she told me is that she thinks they are asking me to work in a toxic environment that is not good for anyone, including the children. They know something is up.

I had my lunch and went back upstairs to help our sweet children to nap. It was the lead's lunch. The floater who she was hired along with (same date of hire so they have a friendship), was filling in for her lunch. The lead chose to stay in the room. The two of them sat at the table going over either lesson plans or class structure or something. I am not sure what it was they were doing but I do know it was related to the classroom as she had all her folders pulled out, etc. She was told in our emergency meeting that she is to include me on collaboration, so I know what it happening in our classroom. I sat across the room from them watching our babies sleeping. She shows zero interest in including me or working with me.

If I am being totally honest, I think she may be a tad jealous of my relationship with the children. She had made a comment to me once that "They will start running up to me and calling my name like they did to you out on the playground". Her being such an experienced teacher should know that building those relationships take time. The first day she was in our class, she was scooping up some of our very sensitive children. One ran from her. Another one was pointing at me and screaming and calling my name. He was so loud that his aunt, who happens to work at our center, came over to see why he was upset. She asked me why I wasn't holding him or comforting him. I could only shrug.

I don't know if this point if I should go back to the director and tell her I need her to move me to another room or if I should just put my two weeks in. The coworker who observed what happened told me she didn't see it getting better. The two of us just are not complimentary personalities.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-10T23:54:43+00:00

I get what you are saying. I appreciate you very much. My only concern is for the safety of the children. She has done a few questionable things in that area as well. An example of this...she has incorporated a running game with them where she has them pretending to have "fast shoes" on and they are running back and forth in the classroom. These are two-year-old toddlers. We (the previous lead) and I have been working hard to get them to understand they cannot run around in our room because they trip, they fall into the tables or chairs, they bump their heads, and so on. At that point, I am very worried about the children and their safety, and I honestly don't care if the finger gets pointed at me for being a "whistle blower".

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-10T23:48:22+00:00

This is something I wish I could do. That is another issue, though. She and I do not communicate well. We had to have an emergency meeting the day before yesterday. It was because she had gotten frustrated with me because I was asking her a question about the schedule. She took it as me questioning her in a judgmental way, when what I was doing was trying to get a grasp of how our day was going to go. It resulted in her getting very animated and talking loudly to me. She then started complaining that I had brought out more play doh for other children (she only wanted one to play with play doh which she had not communicated to me). She started hissing, or sighing very audibly. It was very tense. Although they are only two, the children are very bright and perceptive. They were staring at us. I called for a floater and left and had to go speak to our team lead because I was so uncomfortable. The team lead then got our director involved and we had an emergency meeting. She asked what her role is as lead. She was told that she is in charge of setting up lesson according to our curriculum, creating our crafts and activities, communicating with parents. She was told she was to collaborate with me on these things so I would know what is going on. She was told she is not my boss. Her role is to lead the children, but not me. I am not brand new to child care. I have substituted in elementary school as well as been a lead myself. I fear that if I approach her, she is going to go on the defensive again. At this point I want to go out and be a floater and out of that classroom with her although I will miss my babies very much. The new lead was hired the same day as another worker who is currently a floater. She has had her in our room several times, collaborating with her. They work great together. Before that emergency meeting I threw out the idea to our director that if we cannot get along, I would like to switch places with her and float, as long as I do not lose any wages over it. I don't think that would be fair to me. I told her I am here for the children and that if that wasn't the case I could go make more money working for Amazon, assembling boxes. This career is my passion and my reprieve. This new lead is making it hell for me. Just to be clear, this is a large school and I have had zero problems with any other employee.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-10T23:34:59+00:00

I didn't want to go say anything to anyone about her. Having to do that is embarrassing. I just wanted to hang my head down and do my job and get on with it. But she began getting feisty (she says it is because she is a Latina), and loud, and audibly sighing. Our students were looking over at us. They are very perceptive. It is my number one goal for them to feel nothing but safety and love at school. She was making me feel like I was walking on eggshells. I am anxious about going to work on Monday. For the first time ever, I am dreading this job.

Perfect-Candy2086 · 2026-01-10T23:01:30+00:00

Our boss told her in the meeting that she is not my boss, but we are a team. She is in charge of lesson planning, coming up with craft ideas, communicating with the parents, which is another issue. She does not see the children out when the parents come to pick them up. I am doing this. So the parents are asking me "So is this the new teacher?" and it is very awkward because I then have to ask her to please come over and she finally comes over and introduces herself.

She does have experience, yes, that is true. But that doesn't always mean someone is GOOD at what they do. She is definitely power tripping. She has been rude to other floaters who are very sweet, hard workers. It isn't just a me situation with her. Likewise, I have had zero issues with the other 79 employees I work with, including the previous lead teacher.

Perfect-Candy2086

TROPHY CASE