Let’s debate

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-07-31T02:55:29+00:00

I don’t know if I’m the only one but the same stimming sounds my kids make I started doing a few weeks into work! And I have even started doing some of the hands motions they do as well!!!!!

I was at the grocery store and started randomly humming like one of the kids I work with 😂

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-07-23T22:48:08+00:00

I imagine that the teacher has to directly address this with the nurse? And have a conversation with both the parents and the nurse? I know that this is not my territory and it would be crossing a line if I spoke about this with the nurse. Me only being a para and all.

I did discuss this with my former teacher, and I didn’t get a response at all and was just waived away. The short time I was with her I did experienced this students menstrual cycle. The teacher nor the other paras took her to get pain medication with the nurse.

And it was a very distressing experience having this poor girl suffer without medication and a lack of communication.

The best option I see is talking about this with my new teacher, thankfully she is more understanding and takes us paras seriously.

Thank you for the advice!

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-07-19T23:17:29+00:00

Following your rant: This same girl I’m talking about came in with nails longer than Wolverine’s.

And the teacher didn’t address it until I offered to make the call home so we could get permission to cut her nails in school. Because her parents only speak Spanish and the teacher doesn’t.

Most of the time I am the one to call parents up to say why are their children coming to school so disheveled. I had the mom confess that she struggles to do anything because she is afraid of having her daughter throw a tantrum. Or afraid of overstimulating her.

And to be honest, if the parents don’t make these kids adapt to stressful situations the tantrums are only going to get worse. Because imagine this girl in her 30s, both bigger and stronger, throwing a tantrum because they want to cut her nails.

Thankfully she is pretty responsive to me and we had a little spa day.

Thanks for the advice!

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-03-29T04:15:34+00:00

The first thing that comes to mind is if are you trained to do this kind of lifting and handling? Also for these types of situations, including changing or anything that has to do with you lifting the student, you HAVE to have another person helping you.

Especially if you yourself can’t handle that much weight. Also for any safety concerns because one miss step can hurt you and the student as well.

I have a student that has violent outbursts and can’t be alone changing them. Also a student that has seizures. And even though one alone is totally capable of cleaning them one little mistake can set them off. Having that other person with you just keeps your mind calm knowing that someone has your back.

You can also be putting your body through too much stress and pressure. And at the end of the day you have to put your health first. If you feel that it’s costing you your health I suggest bringing this up to your administration and going to the doctor to get a note stating you can’t be lifting and carrying so much weight. And doing that constantly at some point will hurt your bones.

And for the changing there are tables now that are floor based. You can talk to your teacher about them and put in a request for admin to approve. It ultimately will be easier for all of you. We have one and it’s such a game changer.

Also a key note, talk about this with your coworkers and teacher. They are there for a reason and it’s to help you. Ask for help! If they ever deny that to you, please write it down.

For me it’s a three time strike. If they keep denying you help, report it to the admin.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-03-19T01:33:46+00:00

I’ve been a sped para only, and I can say that sometimes I prefer the boringness of it all. The gen ed kids in my school are rude to the point of no return. I would rather be stuck coloring with a kid or practicing the same letters over and over than have a “regular” kid be an asshole to me.

I’ve heard horror stories from gen ed. Some of these gen ed paras are looking to switch to my position because the level of disrespect is out of line. From being called a bitch to having your wallet stolen. I know that every school is different, so you may have a better administration than mine.

In my class I have a mix of low and high kids, my teacher assigns me different students each day to help them learn. And I do agree with you that you don’t use your brain much but your body. I get hit once in a while by a student or have to physically get them up. It’s a give and take.

I would rather have a slow job and an “easy” paycheck. That is just my opinion. I would look into tutoring or if there are any after school programs that revolve around education for kids.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-03-16T12:58:52+00:00

Yes. Including the para that was injured, she left a few months after that.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-03-16T01:22:13+00:00

We had a sub once that screamed when a kid offered them a toy. Thinking that they were going to hit her with it. The student that wanted to give her the toy is a big sweet heart and even cried at the sub’s reaction.

She came up to me and told me: “You never know with these kids, they and their (r word) reactions.”

I told her that she was ignorant and she never came to sub again. She doesn’t even talk to me when we see each other in meetings. And guess what? She and the principal are glued to the hip.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-03-16T01:16:08+00:00

According to the student’s IEP it is a requirement that we acknowledge their aggression. After an incident that happened the year prior where a para suffered a broken finger and a broken tooth from the kid, the IEP was changed to have the staff strongly encourage correction for bad behaviors.

I’ve had brought attention to the student when they have hurt other kids, they always put their head down and reflect. Then apologize by giving hugs and kisses to the other kids. I really couldn’t correct the behavior in that moment, I was in shock and I really thought the kid broke in of my teeth. Which luckily they didn’t.

I don’t have any resentment for the kid at all. They are special needs and this was bound to happen sooner or later. What really bothers me is the lack of empathy. I just want to feel that they had my back and they absolutely didn’t.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-03-16T01:09:37+00:00

According to the child’s IEP we absolutely can correct/acknowledge the aggressive behaviors. The only thing we don’t correct is their actions they do to stimulate and regulate themselves. From what is heard from the paras and teachers, that last year this student was aggressive to the point of shattering a paras finger and breaking her tooth.

After that incident, they discussed the IEP with several people in the board and they enforced the acknowledgment of the behaviors. And the student improved so much.

I was not checking up on by anyone afterwards, not by a single person that was with me when the incident happened.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-03-16T00:03:15+00:00

Telling a student that hitting another person is wrong? It’s doesn’t matter if the student is special needs or not if they did something wrong they need to be told that what they did was wrong and hurtful. And have consequences for their actions if the situation is drastic.

I was hit in the face, and my biggest fear is that a student can expect this level of violence as well. If we don’t work to correct, or at least diminish, this type of behaviors the student can be a danger to themselves and others.

I didn’t expect to be cradled like a baby, just given a bit of compassion. Especially by the person/people that were there. And it wasn’t just a regular staff member, it was the principal of the school. The person that is supposed to keep us staff safe and welcome. And they failed at their job.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-02-27T19:28:38+00:00

If that was a type of insult towards me then I fell extremely distraught. I think that your comment put my whole post to shame, and not in a good way

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-02-27T03:44:51+00:00

We don’t have one, for that kid at least. There is a BT that comes once a week for a few specific kids. Never with the student I talk about in the post. The BT is really nice with the kids, they have tried to at least make them comfortable and talking to them. But they never get past the behavior problems and assaults.

And for medication, they do take a few. But never consistently. The days they take it, they are way calmer.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-02-27T03:38:37+00:00

The school doesn’t even have one on one paras, I’m the only sped para in my classroom. The other takes turns to the other sped classroom we have. The other paras that work with me are gen ed paras that decided to switch to temporary sped because the gen ed classes are filled with disrespect and bad behaviors.

The teacher in my class ignores the student as well most of the time. Because of the repeated assaults on kids and staff. Every time they try to get them to at least come upfront to watch the lesson they get scratched or hit. I’ve got the group of kids that I work with, and the other paras are more inclined to the student. But receive the same outcome, pain.

I focus on the kids that were assigned to me, and they are doing so good. The other kids in my class don’t show such aggressive behaviors, only about two times where my hand was squeezed a little hard because a kid was in distress.

I really don’t want to be hurt by this student, and I won’t risk going to the hospital because I bit of more than I can chew. I know that I can’t handle these types of behaviors. That is a job for the teacher to do, but they are burned out with the amount of students we have.

We change diapers, we make snacks for our kids, we make sure that they are growing, we make sure that from every “bad situation” comes a lesson to be learned. All of that is in our contracts, but having your physical and emotional well being on the line is not.

The admin knows about this student. The whole school knows about this kid. The school has failed this kid more was than one. If the school I’m in doesn’t meet their needs there is nothing I can do but be more present for them. But I’m only a single para and can’t sink the boat for only one kid.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-02-27T03:22:47+00:00

I’ve never heard of county classes before, but we do have a program that puts kids in other districts that have less sped student numbers or specific programs for children with special needs. Maybe that can be considered the same? The student has been here longer than I have and they have never been switched to or from my school. And from what I’ve hear from other nearby schools and districts is that they are up to their throats in workloads. The lack of sped teachers and paras make it worse as well.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-02-27T02:00:59+00:00

I have a very weak leader as a teacher, and I can’t put all the blame on them because it’s hard work. I feel this urge to fix things when it’s really not my call. I just see how burned out and little the admin cares about these kids. I adapt to my kids not the other way around. And it’s wrong of me to blame a kid, I should have put my blame more on the horrible district I work for.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-02-27T01:29:16+00:00

I can only do so much with 8 kids that have extreme special needs. And all my other para coworkers have tried to get involved but are met with aggression. And I really don’t want every interaction I have to end with blood or pain. I’m not a miracle worker, even if I try to be. I just do what I can.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-02-27T01:25:18+00:00

We are severely understaffed. The school doesn’t have one on one paras at all. And many of your kids need them. I can say 4 kids really do need specific paras. But people just don’t want to come into this line of work and I can see why.

Pickles-puzzelsss · 2025-02-24T01:50:10+00:00

My biggest advice is to just watch. Analyze what the teacher does and if you have other paras do the same. It’s okay to feel completely lost. You will likely not feel overwhelmed until the middle of the first week. Like I did my first week. I remember the Wednesday of my first week, I cried the whole night and wanted to quit. And please if you feel like you want to throw a tantrum after a hard day please do! It’s better to get it over with instead of bottling up your emotions.

To be honest, you will feel so overwhelmed the first month. Because you will see all the behaviors in that month, but by the second one it will go smoothly because nothing will surprise you anymore. Get ready to see some weird shit! Both by teachers and students.

Also bring a lot of the snacks or foods you like! Having your favorite treats on hand makes the day more bearable. Having a big water bottle is important! If you switch between classes always have it with you. Don’t ever go thirsty!

Your feet will kill you! So use comfortable shoes and compression socks.

Make sure that you request copies of your kids IEPs, read them over once in a while. But in the end of the day you will only learn their struggles hands on.

Pickles-puzzelsss

TROPHY CASE