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not my love

In my preschool class we've been working with this kid, Eric, who punches. He punches his mom, he punches me, he punches other kids. Especially the kids he likes. Seems the better he likes you, the more he punches you. Standard admonitions haven't been working. When Eric punches me, I say, "Eric, I don't like it when you hit me. It hurts." Still. He punches.

So yesterday as I'm serving snack I walk by Eric's chair and he punches me in the butt. I decide to try a different tack. "Eric," I say, "there are better ways to show your love."

"This is not my love," he tells me. "This is my fist."

Indeed.

Comments

auntie m said…
Sounds like Eric knows exactly what he is doing.
6:51 PM
sulu-design said…
Yikes... reminds me of a few encounters I had in my classrooms. Good thing Eric has you in his life, I say.
8:29 PM
Ana said…
Yikes from me, too.
Can I say I have absolutely no slack for males to use violence to demonstrate any emotion. I don't care what age.
Kudos to you for hanging in there with him and not shaming him... I don't think I could do that. I think I'd just lose it!
Good Luck and keep me posted if you find the path to intervention that works. =]
4:58 PM
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