Photo: TikTok
She's getting real on shoe and snack etiquette in the classroom.
By Megan Quinn — Written on May 06, 2023
Being a kindergarten teacher is not an easy task. They have to balance managing a large group of young children, meeting all of the needs of the students, and working long hours all day in a classroom. The job requires a lot of patience, creativity, and dedication.
It is helpful for kindergarten teachers when their students’ parents are teachers themselves and empathize with their struggles. One mother, who also teaches kindergarten, took to TikTok to share the top three things she will never do as a kindergarten parent and encouraged other parents to do the same.
The mother and teacher revealed things she will ‘never do’ when her own child enters kindergarten.
Kristen, a kindergarten teacher who often posts videos about her experiences in the classroom took it upon herself to share some things parents of her students can do to make her already difficult job somewhat easier. She shared the three things she will not be doing with her son when he reaches kindergarten, and they are often things that most parents completely overlook.
She will not send her son with lace-up shoes if he cannot tie his own yet.
Kristen says that if her son cannot tie his own shoes, she will have him wear pre-laced slip-on shoes or velcro shoes to school. This will make the role of his teacher easier since they will not have to bend down so often and tie his shoes for him while they are trying to teach.
Kristen adds the gross aspects of tying children’s shoelaces that we may not even realize. “There’s nothing worse than bending down to tie a child’s shoes and the laces are wet and guess where they’ve been? The bathroom,” she shares. “So sorry to my son but he’s team velcro until he can tie his shoes, period.”
She will not give messy snacks to her son to take to school with him.
Specifically, Kristen is talking about those little cups with diced fruit and juice. While these are a rather healthy snack option for your child, they are a hassle for their teachers.
“Teachers across America know that these are not only so hard to open, but they spill juice on you everywhere,” she claims. “On you, the desk, your hand, like it’s impossible to open this lid without spilling juice everywhere.”
She adds that whoever invented the specific lid “deserves jail time,” and that she will be sending her son to school with pre-cut apple slices.
She will never believe her child’s version of events of what he did at school.
Children have imaginative and creative minds, which is a great quality. However, it can prove to be troublesome at times as they may tend to confuse reality with what is going on in their heads.
As a mother and teacher. Kristen is very well aware of this and will keep in mind that when she asks her son what he did in school that day, some of the details may be fictional. She urges other parents to have the same mindset.
“For example, a student told their parents that I took the entire class on an unauthorized field trip to the park and put the students in my own personal vehicle and just didn't tell their parents,” she says. “This parent was enraged and couldn’t believe I would do such a thing.”
However, Kristen claims that what actually happened was a much different version of events. “Instead of going to one playground on the campus of our school, we went to another playground that’s on the campus of our school, which we usually do every Friday anyway.”
Thankfully, the student’s parent was apologetic and the student confirmed Kristen’s story.
Other teachers praised Kristen for her advice.
“As a kindergarten teacher, I feel for you! Thank you for this!” one TikTok user commented. “Preschool teacher here: if your kid shows up in lace-up shoes for outside, I AM PUTTING DAY CARE SHOES ON THEM. Not sorry. Bye,” another user shared.
“Little psychopath kids making up stories to get you in trouble,” another user agreed. “I had one kid tell the dad we ate mac and cheese for lunch two weeks straight.”
So if you’re a parent who has a child starting kindergarten soon, you may want to seek some advice from kindergarten teachers themselves. After all, they are the experts!
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.