hi im new to subbing and i was wondering if anyone has ever accidentally said a swear word? I had recess duty the other day and one child was on swings and jumping off and landing directly on her butt....but when i told her to stop doing this i accidently used the word ASS before my mind could remind me to say bum or rear or butt...the safety of the child was my first worry....however other children nearby heard me and a parent has complained actually saying that if im at the school EVER again she will pull her kids? Is this severe ....i did apologize but now i dont know what to do? i guess it was an unforgivable mistake
i have... my kids laugh and say ooohhhh, and I say, do you want me to start writing you up every time YOU slip? That shuts them up pretty quickly.
It's not an unforgivable one but it isn't a very good one either. Being that you are a sub and not a perm staff that puts you in a precarious situation. Have you spoken with the Principal about it yet?
It's never happened to me because I don't cuss in general, so a cuss word isn't just going to slip out of my mouth.
Yes and she told me that i am an excellent sub one of the best theyve had and that she is going to put me on hold until this blows over at least for a few weeks...im subbing in my hometown where everyone knows me im well liked as ive worked in the area as a hairstylist and never known to swear and have always been professional but it just slipped as i was more concerned about the childs safety
i accidentally told a child to stop jumping of the swings and landing on her ass...i was more worried about her safety and it just slipped out i feel horrible
Personally, I think it is no big deal - it is just a way for kids to feel like they have power over you - BUT in the real world people will use anything they can to cause trouble. Look - no one with a CLUE pulls a child from a school because a sub said ASS. You can say ASS on daytime TV (as long as you don't say "hole" along with it.) It.is.not.a.big.deal! Give it time to blow over - is there a neighboring district you can sub in until this blows over - they'll forget about it in time... Honestly - I can't BELIEVE it hasn't happened to me yet. 12 years of working with truckers has given me quite the mouth, but for some reason when I am around kids some weird switch goes off and I switch gears...
the parent complaining is being kept confidential which i understand however as i am in a small town i feel it could be just someone that has a beef with me as i owned a hair salon and had to fire a few parents and take several others to court for bounced checks but there is no way of me finding out who submitted the compliant
it makes me wonder if everything i say can be taken out of context....as i told a line of mostly boys at recess that were bouncing balls in line "to hold their balls" of course they snickered and i said "you know what i meant" next ill be accused of suggesting pornography
Wow..the parent must be a bit sensitive. I'd stick with what the admin. is saying. It sounds encouraging. My hs'ers love to twist any word I could say into something naught, dirty, and pornographic. I almost need a english to naughty dictionary with me 24-7 to look up words before saying anything.
i also have suspisions that another sub is behind this and considers me as competition and has put someone up to this.This sub has been abrasive and accusing me of being a favorite and is extremely concerned about how many days im getting
My Error One possible way to handle this is tell the students that, yes, you perhaps you should not of said what you said, that you had other choices of words, that you said it as reaction to a situation, and you will be careful in the future. Tell them that this is how we learn, how we respond to mistakes, and how we grow into a better person from that learning.
yes i did correct myself with the students immediately after the incident and told them i made a mistake and i should have said bum or rear
Last year while I was a kinder teacher I fell down at the playground. When I landed on my ankle and nearly broke it I said the "F" word as i was falling. I didn't know that I was saying it until after words when another teacher told me I said it. I went to my Asst principal and told her and waited for a parent to copmplain. No one ever did which was amazing I thought. Anyway parents like that should be taped to see what they say on a daily basis. I am cusser at home, so I have really had learn to curb my language. Things should blow over in a week or two.
ass? That is nothing. Attending private school I couldn't even say omg. When I first started out I even sent a child to the principal's office for saying crap. But Although I usually don't cuss, having my child's teachers without thinking say ass would not be big deal. Compared to what my child tells me of what one of her hs teachers cusses about that is nothing! And depending on the grade level , the complaint may not be coming from a parent it may be even a teacher. We are always watching but that seems a bit too harsh. I agree just apologize , we are all human.
Why do you want to know? I honestly thing maybe you're making a bigger deal of this than you need to. You made a mistake. You apologized. You went to the principal. He said you'll be 'lying low' for a while, but not to worry. Don't make it into the Crime of the Century. Just accept the down time and get past it. It doesn't matter who complained. And, yes, the things we say as teachers frequently ARE taken out of context by kids. There's simply no way around it.
I was subbing in a K class once. I was telling them a story to keep them quiet before dismissal. My words tangled as they came out of my mouth and made the word d_a_m_n. The only person that noticed was the aide in the room and she giggled knowing it was an accident. The kids didn't notice and I moved on.
All of the advice here has been wonderful thanks to all of you i did pick up applications at another district and im going to take principle's advice to just let things blow over. If ever a situation like this occurs again i will make sure to bring it to someones attention BEFORE a parent complaint happens....learning experience for sure
Sometimes, a student I'm working w/ will say a cuss word (NOT at me!) I just pretend like I didn't hear it.
Not me. I correct them every single time. I realize it's a mistake. They have to realize that there are certain people in front of whom they watch their language. I'm one of them.
I recall my very first day in a classroom at the end of 1997. I recieved no training or preperation, and was simply called to work. I had no idea what I was doing in this 5th grade class. Out of frustration I yelled at some boys in the back to "sit their asses down". The Principal calmly spoke with me on the playground and told me to be careful about what I said since she got a complaint from the students. I left this district long ago, but I almost got derailed before I started. There was another time where I was reading aloud from a book that had been assigned by the 3rd or 4th grade teacher. Oddly enough, the word ass(not the mule kind) appeared in the book. They were a little surprised, and there were a couple "oohs", but it turned out to be no big deal.
You're right. I should correct them too. But for me, it's almost like a losing battle. I only see the kids I'm currently working w/ 1 day a wk for 30 min, so they're probably cussing the other 6 days a wk at recess & probably at home too.
That's OK. I don't care how often they get away with it for someone else. They need to learn that SOME people demand the respect of a decent vocabulary and that I'm one of them. Invariably, the response is "Oops, sorry Mrs. A!"
to old student ....after the principle spoke to you about the student complaint after you said "sit your asses down" did you ever get called back to work?
I think the whole thing was totally overblown. I believe the principal should realize that people make mistakes and told the parent you are an excellent sub who has made a mistake and she is sure it not happen again. She might make sure you do not sub in that child's classroom.I think this perfect parent totally overreacted. If this is the worst curse word the children ever hear they will have led a very sheltered life. I bet they hear many worse curses on TV,radio and videos all day long.I think the perfect parents should be thankful you were worried about their perfect children getting hurt.
thank you yank7...i my first concern was truly for the safety of a child ...the slip came out as a reaction to the situation....subbing is a recent second job im a hairstylist and have been for 15 years so i am very aware of whats tolerated in public as far a language goes. But again im in a small town and feel this may be a parent who just may not care for me outside of school. I feel if the parent was truly crediable id have been terminated right there and it was odd that the complaint came to the principle via e-mail. If i get called back i intend to have a talk with the principle about how ive lived in the community all my life but everyone has had dealings with people that dont always leave warm fuzzy feelings.
My 5th grade students were tattling like crazy after recess ... "she did this, and he did that, and it's not fair, etc." - I blurted out "Sh_t happens!" before I had time to think! I quickly decided to act like nothing happened. I could hear the students right near me whispering, "what did she say?" and giggling a bit. My thinking at the time was that if I made a big deal out of what I said that it would escalate into big gossip so I just let it go.
Yes. Fortunately the Principal was low key. She also probably knew it was my first day, so she cut me some slack. I was lucky. There are probably a handful of schools where this would have been a death sentence.
