Teachers - are your 6-8 year olds this rude?

[WhaleBlue]

I work in lots of different schools working with small groups of children aged between 6 & 8. More recently I’ve noticed the level of interrupting when I’m speaking, not listening to instructions and generally thinking what they have to say is far more important than what I have to stay really off putting.

I’ve been doing the same role for over 20 years and never had any real issues, but over recent months am becoming more frustrated with this. Is it just my area or is it the same across the UK?

God only knows how their class room teacher copes with about 30 of them at the same time.

This is also something that they have expressed an interest in which their parents are paying for.

I don't recognise this at all. Held responsible by who? I'm a parent of four and feel that firm boundaries are fundamental to secure MH. It's removing all obstacles, challenge and exposure to normal levels of worry that are creating MH issues imo.

This is such key point. Beneath all the less than ideal behaviour those poor kids must be so anxious, without even knowing they are, as this is now their normal. Children deserve boundaries, to know they are safe and thst the grown ups are in charge.

Then I feel for those who are wanting to learn! It is so difficult to complete a lesson with constant comments etc.

There is a focus on those who can't be in the classroom not being in the classroom. Sen hubs. Exclusion rooms. That's whats going to happen.

THIS

An iPad/ phone is vastly superior to the GameBoys and tv we had as kids. You’re naive AF if you think they’re the same experience. The things children are seeing on TikTok or YouTube are worlds apart from CITV or Nickelodeon.

Another massive difference is that the parents are equally just as engrossed with their screens. I’d love to know how many parents on MN regularly have engagingly thorough conversations with their DC at the dinner table or sat on the sofa without any electronic distraction for a long duration.

Whichever way you look at it hen parents are pretty shit at the moment.

Schools are getting the brunt of this.

As a side note I think most parents on here are family orientated. We have screens here. But we also have clubs, dinner together and weekends are spent mostly out of the house. I often ask my class children how their weekend has been. It comes as no surprise the ones who say they spent the weekend by themselves and did nothing.

You might have a particularly large number of children who don’t actually want to learn the instrument at the moment.

Hmm I think the MN demographic probably does include a higher proportion of regular “engaging thorough conversations” (a quite funny description, sorry I know you’re being very serious ) with their children around the dinner table. Apart from anything else, you’re on here and I’m assuming you did/do that.

We eat dinner as a family every night, have screen time limits, do lots together- yesterday we went to a museum and talked a lot about what we'd seen afterwards and then went swimming. To be fair though, I wouldn't be surprised if my child's teacher gets the same answer about what he did at the weekend as I get about what he's done at school - 'nothing' or 'I don't remember'...

@LouLou198 its interesting isn't it. I have an 8 year old myself and whilst he isn't disruptive or actually exhibiting behaviour I'd call 'naughty', he definitely has struggles focusing; far more so than his older sibling. I really do think the lockdowns and lack of formal schooling had an impact.

The interupting and correcting staff is constant. They genuinely feel entitled to their opinion being heard and validated at all times.

There is a huge push with wellbeing currently, which is obviously brilliant, but it's hard with the generation of little emperor's that we have.

They're not used to waiting or not being the most important because it's solidified that their feelings matter the most.

But when you amplify that by 30, it's really impossible to manage without upsetting a small someone. That small someone who will then go outside to tell their mum, who will turn up and expect 20 minutes of your time right now, because what's happened and why. They're not able to manage their emotions well, so there's lots of falling out and crying, fighting and hitting.

I don't like the expectation of resilience in children, it's something a lot of adults struggle with, and it's learned and adapted over time, but I don't think the foundation stones are being laid, combined with COVID, it's no surprise there's a lot of very anxious and confused kids.

The vast majority are nice kids, but they're really not used to being told no, wait, or be quiet and it has a huge knock on effect.

Because at 6 they are still learning these skills?

Because at 6 they are still learning these skills?

I think the point is that 6-8 year olds didn't interrupt teachers like nursery age children do. They had already learnt those skills. Now they do not, as a rule, have those skills.