While it sounds harsh....

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Home : 2003 : September : 11

While it sounds harsh....
By Cathy-Dee

I actually do side with the 5th grade teacher on this one.

Any change is difficult for a student, but if she isolates herself from her new classmates especially now at the beginning of the year she will only end up being
more taunted and teased in the end. And as far as tattling, I wouldn't have expected anything else but tattling to occur. One of their classmates was being allowed to break the rules, no student likes it when someone else gets to break the rules.
What would be ideal is to try to find another girl in the grade 5 class who is also shy and doesn't have a lot of friends and try to steer

these two together. Perhaps since you talk with her you can encourage her in this area. And other teachers may talk with her as well but you may not see it as it could happen within the classroom or at times when you are not around.

Later on in the year or when they are outside on recess she can interact with her old friends, but if she doesn't make new friends in her current class she will be very isolated in class.

Now having said that, if I had been the other teacher I would have said from this point on I'd rather she sits with her class, but we'll let it go for today as she is already sitting with another group. It would have been better for the girl and not have placed you in such a hard position.