Skip to main content

Those Face-Melting Acid Bubbles

At a site today, I overheard a well-meaning teacher of two-year-olds tell a child at a water table, "Don't put those bubbles on your face, you might get them in your eyes or mouth!"

I resisted asking the teacher whether or not she had ever had bubbles in her eyes or mouth, as my presence there was not in a capacity that allowed for much input from me. However, her insistence that it hurt, coupled with the presence of both her eyes, implied that she had in fact gotten soap in her eyes and successfully recovered. Meanwhile, the child was exploring the sensation of bubbles on his face. Minutes before, we had been discussing how he looked like daddy shaving, and how those same dangerous bubbles tickled his cheeks.

While I'm not disputing that there a few things I'd prefer in my eyes to bubble bath, the fact is that this teacher shut down some great sensorial and language learning opportunities for the fear of... temporary discomfort? Needing a towel? The molecules in the soap spontaneously rearranging to become sulfuric acid and melt that child's face?

While of course the safety of the children in our care is paramount, there's something to be said for the occasional encounter with soap suds.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Feelings

I saw an interaction this morning that stopped me in my tracks. A child, newly three, was crying because he had lost a toy in the car. Then he began yelling. Then kicking. The upset kept intensifying as his caregiver watched, not wanting to stop him from getting through his feelings (as she told another adult who asked if she could assist). She's surely been told somewhere along the line that accepting children's feelings means not stopping them. Yay!...But she's missing some follow -up. Children need to know that it's okay to be angry or sad or excited or whatever else they feel. But they also sometimes need help getting through to the calm after. An adult standing by, mute, communicates a lack of interest, not acceptance. The child intensifies, needing guidance and reassurance. The adult, so good - heartedly eager to accept the child as they are, remains unphased. The child cries out more for the centering that occurs when an adult they're attached to can initia
Post a Comment
Read more

Well, Duh.

 Friday afternoon, I walked back into my classroom to a scene that is not unusual in any group of young children. One child had just hit another (both three years old), attempting to get a coveted toy. I walked over to the two, and as I always do, I looked at the crying child who had been hit and said, "Wow, it looks like Y is really hurting." Then, I recognized that wasn't the whole picture, and looked at the child who had hit (this time), who was already averting their eyes, and said, "It looks like A is hurting too." A turned around, stunned at my ability to perceive what was obvious to them. This time, at least. "Yeah!" They exclaimed. Y stopped crying and looked at A. I offered hugs to both, and attempted to sportscast what I saw. "A wanted that toy, and Y had it! Y didn't want to be hit." A looked at Y, and said, "Yeah, and I really wanted the truck, but I didn't want to hurt you." Both children found a spot i
Post a Comment
Read more

"Why Didn't You Tell Me That?"

Everyone knows the feeling of being at the top of their game. In early childhood, that looks a little different than in other professions. The playground where I work is divided into two levels, out of necessity (Bay Area real estate is at a premium!). The upper level has our play structure and a fair amount of open area to run. The bottom level is a little more compact. The steps at my school are not unsafe, but they are wood steps, and on this particular day, they were wet. This child knows "we don't play on the stairs," but there were robbers to be chased down, and the stairs were playable area. As the child started his descent, I had that moment of clarity. I walked over to him, made eye contact, and said, "Hey, do you know why I don't let you play on the stairs?" He shook his head. "Do you remember the ice you saw on the bench? That's on the stairs too, and I don't want you to slip and fall." He digested this for a moment,
Post a Comment
Read more