My worst nightmare could have happened today

[countmein]

Please pray that God gives me some peace through this.......

I am still very upset, writing this now, even though this happened around 11 Monday morning. I dropped Caleb (6) and Kirsten (4) off at Kid's Kollege Monday morning. This is a "fun camp" type deal that the school does in the summer for younger kids. It is mainly reading a story, doing a craft project, and having a snack. The kids had attended a few of these classes last week and all went well. The classes are limited to only 10 children, so I figured it would be a good opportunity for my homeschoolers to play with some other kids in a small, well supervised enviroment. The class they went to on Monday is one that is 2 hours long and it will run everyday this week thru Thursday. The teacher for this class was one that I hadn't met before, not one of the teachers from last week. I took the kids into the class and introduced them and myself to the teacher, reminded her that Kirsten was only 4, and told her I would be back at 11 to pick them up.

When I arrived at 11 to pick them up, I met Karrie, a woman I already knew, outside. She is a teacher in another town, was one of Caleb's teachers for Kid's Kollege last week and her son played soccer with Caleb last summer. She informed me that she stopped Kirsten from escaping earlier. I asked her what she meant, thinking that maybe Kirsten had simply tried to wander outside her classroom. IF ONLY. She proceeded to tell me that as she was coming in the door, she noticed Kirsten following another woman out the door. WHAT!? The outside doors are a LONG way from the classroom they were in. The classroom that they were in is located in the middle of the school building, by the library. You have to walk out of the classroom, past the caffeteria, four classrooms, the gym and the nurses office to get to the outside doors. This was not a case of her just being outside the classroom door, this is a case of her being a halfway through the building and almost out the door!!! Luckily, Karrie recognized Kirsten and stopped them from leaving. She pointed out that she knew that this other woman was not Kirsten's mom and that Kirsten needed to be back with her class until I got there to pick her up. She then took Kirsten and walked her back to the classroom and handed her back over to the teacher. At this point I don't know what to think! Had Kirsten just been following this woman and the woman didn't even notice, or was she going to try to drive away with her? (You need to understand at this point that Kirsten doesn't know a stranger. She is a very social little girl that feels that it is her calling in life to say hello to every customer when we go to Wal*Mart.) When I got to the classroom, I asked the teacher how Kirsten did during the class and she said that she did fine, but to have her wear shorts tomorrow that don't have a button, since she cannot button them herself. NOT ONE WORD TO ME ABOUT MY DAUGHTER ALMOST LEAVING WITH ANOTHER WOMAN. I don't think this woman had a clue as to how close my 4 year old came to disappearing today. I "think" what happened is that she allowed my 4 year old to go to the bathroom BY HERSELF and figured that Karrie brought her back from the bathroom. Oh btw, I forgot to mention that this is the high school building and those older students were also there for summer school. Why is a four year old allowed to walk the halls alone when there are older kids there too?

Maybe I am overreacting here, but my children will not be going back tomorrow or the rest of the week. Silly me, I thought when I left my children at the school with a teacher that they would be supervised and watched by an adult at all times. I am out the money, but I am not at all worried about that. The only thing I am debating now is whether or not to contact the lady in charge of the Kid's Kollege program or the principal of the elementry school to report what happened today. The only thing keeping me from not reporting it is that I am afraid that they will think, because I am one of those crazy, overprotective homeschoolers, that I am just overreacting. But what if I don't report it and this lady was looking to snatch a kid? I can tell you, as the day went on, it kept sinking in deeper that my child could have disappeared today and maybe never seen again. I held her a little tighter and kept her a lot closer. She is such a precious little girl.

Please say a prayer of thanksgiving with me that nothing happened to Kirsten today, that she was kept safe, and then add a prayer for my nerves and for some widsdom and guidance in what to do from here.

[The Girl from Ipanema]

What a frightening experience!

I'm so glad that your baby is ok, countmein. :)

It sounds as you were more rational and level headed than I would have been. Especially that the other teacher didn't appear to even know what had happened! Arggghhhh!

[PredFan]

Scary stuff. Need to get to the bottom of that.

[MrShotShot]

You absolutely need to tell the director - especially since you have the other woman's story to back yours up. The teacher in charge needs to be held accountable for this error and the school needs to take steps to ensure that it doesn't happen again. And if you don't get any satisfaction from the school, you should go to the press.

Imagine the feelings you're having now being multiplied should this person try this again at another school and you didn't do anything to notify the administration.

[nortman]

It's your child, you are not overreacting. I think I would have lost it with that teacher on the spot.

[StoneScratcher]

You absolutely need to tell the director - especially since you have the other woman's story to back yours up. The teacher in charge needs to be held accountable for this error and the school needs to take steps to ensure that it doesn't happen again. And if you don't get any satisfaction from the school, you should go to the press.

Imagine the feelings you're having now being multiplied should this person try this again at another school and you didn't do anything to notify the administration.

Great advice! I agree.

[bella-day]

Thank God the other lady recognized your daughter.

I would have had to ask the teacher in charge why my child was allowed to almost leave the building with a stranger.

[Hadassah]

YES!!! Notify the director!!! Who cares what they think? This is your child, not theirs. Someone (or more than one) was seriously derelict in duty and this needs to be looked into and corrective measures taken.


Thank God nothing happened. :pray:

[EmmanuelGoldstein]

The only thing I am debating now is whether or not to contact the lady in charge of the Kid's Kollege program or the principal of the elementry school to report what happened today. The only thing keeping me from not reporting it is that I am afraid that they will think, because I am one of those crazy, overprotective homeschoolers, that I am just overreacting.

There should be no 'debating' what to do here. Forget for a moment pointing fingers and placing blame. Don't view this as trying to get someone in trouble. It should go deeper than that. There is something here that is obviously broken, and the supervisors of the program (and the school board, for that matter) need to be aware of the problem. Unless they know, they can't take steps to prevent this from happening again---and possibly with a less positive outcome.

[JimGP20]

The only thing I am debating now is whether or not to contact the lady in charge of the Kid's Kollege program or the principal of the elementry school to report what happened today.


About 10 years ago, my wife and I ran the summer day camp for the local district of Cub Scouts. We had 350 first and second grade boys at to look after, and security for the camp was paramount. Every adult leader on our staff underwent youth protection training and was briefed daily on any and all security measures to insure the safety of the boys. The most elementary rule was the buddy system when going on bathroom breaks. We NEVER EVER let a child be alone for any reason. As a former director, I can honestly tell you that you should report this. Even if you are not going to continue taking your children there, you may indeed save another person's child from a dangerous situation. I join you in thanking the Lord that nothing bad happened to your child.

[EmmanuelGoldstein]

About 10 years ago, my wife and I ran the summer day camp for the local district of Cub Scouts. We had 350 first and second grade boys at to look after, and security for the camp was paramount. Every adult leader on our staff underwent youth protection training and was briefed daily on any and all security measures to insure the safety of the boys. The most elementary rule was the buddy system when going on bathroom breaks. We NEVER EVER let a child be alone for any reason.

My daughter was a boy scout lol. She worked the regional camp every summer for several years. I have to say, their training is second to none. Very impressive.

[5thIDSoldier]

Thank God the other lady recognized your daughter.

I would have had to ask the teacher in charge why my child was allowed to almost leave the building with a stranger.

Indeed.

[mysticbeauty_nbeast]

I'm going to echo what others have already posted. You need to notify the director of what happened so that they can ensure it doesn't happen to another child! Who cares if they think your being over protective? Who cares if 'they' think your a crazy home schooler? Who cares what they think! Your being a parent who is looking out for your child..how is that crazy?

I'm glad your child is ok...a true blessing to be sure.

Now go call that director!

~Mysty

[RTchoke]

I'm going to echo what others have already posted. You need to notify the director of what happened so that they can ensure it doesn't happen to another child! Who cares if they think your being over protective? Who cares if 'they' think your a crazy home schooler? Who cares what they think! Your being a parent who is looking out for your child..how is that crazy?

I'm glad your child is ok...a true blessing to be sure.

Now go call that director!

~Mysty

Ditto.

I also have a question for the OP. Did the person who took your daughter back in not confront this other woman at all? As in ask who she was and why was she was with a child that obviously was not hers or her responsibility?

[Calibabe]

Please pray that God gives me some peace through this.......

I am still very upset, writing this now, even though this happened around 11 Monday morning. I dropped Caleb (6) and Kirsten (4) off at Kid's Kollege Monday morning. This is a "fun camp" type deal that the school does in the summer for younger kids. It is mainly reading a story, doing a craft project, and having a snack. The kids had attended a few of these classes last week and all went well. The classes are limited to only 10 children, so I figured it would be a good opportunity for my homeschoolers to play with some other kids in a small, well supervised enviroment. The class they went to on Monday is one that is 2 hours long and it will run everyday this week thru Thursday. The teacher for this class was one that I hadn't met before, not one of the teachers from last week. I took the kids into the class and introduced them and myself to the teacher, reminded her that Kirsten was only 4, and told her I would be back at 11 to pick them up.

When I arrived at 11 to pick them up, I met Karrie, a woman I already knew, outside. She is a teacher in another town, was one of Caleb's teachers for Kid's Kollege last week and her son played soccer with Caleb last summer. She informed me that she stopped Kirsten from escaping earlier. I asked her what she meant, thinking that maybe Kirsten had simply tried to wander outside her classroom. IF ONLY. She proceeded to tell me that as she was coming in the door, she noticed Kirsten following another woman out the door. WHAT!? The outside doors are a LONG way from the classroom they were in. The classroom that they were in is located in the middle of the school building, by the library. You have to walk out of the classroom, past the caffeteria, four classrooms, the gym and the nurses office to get to the outside doors. This was not a case of her just being outside the classroom door, this is a case of her being a halfway through the building and almost out the door!!! Luckily, Karrie recognized Kirsten and stopped them from leaving. She pointed out that she knew that this other woman was not Kirsten's mom and that Kirsten needed to be back with her class until I got there to pick her up. She then took Kirsten and walked her back to the classroom and handed her back over to the teacher. At this point I don't know what to think! Had Kirsten just been following this woman and the woman didn't even notice, or was she going to try to drive away with her? (You need to understand at this point that Kirsten doesn't know a stranger. She is a very social little girl that feels that it is her calling in life to say hello to every customer when we go to Wal*Mart.) When I got to the classroom, I asked the teacher how Kirsten did during the class and she said that she did fine, but to have her wear shorts tomorrow that don't have a button, since she cannot button them herself. NOT ONE WORD TO ME ABOUT MY DAUGHTER ALMOST LEAVING WITH ANOTHER WOMAN. I don't think this woman had a clue as to how close my 4 year old came to disappearing today. I "think" what happened is that she allowed my 4 year old to go to the bathroom BY HERSELF and figured that Karrie brought her back from the bathroom. Oh btw, I forgot to mention that this is the high school building and those older students were also there for summer school. Why is a four year old allowed to walk the halls alone when there are older kids there too?

Maybe I am overreacting here, but my children will not be going back tomorrow or the rest of the week. Silly me, I thought when I left my children at the school with a teacher that they would be supervised and watched by an adult at all times. I am out the money, but I am not at all worried about that. The only thing I am debating now is whether or not to contact the lady in charge of the Kid's Kollege program or the principal of the elementry school to report what happened today. The only thing keeping me from not reporting it is that I am afraid that they will think, because I am one of those crazy, overprotective homeschoolers, that I am just overreacting. But what if I don't report it and this lady was looking to snatch a kid? I can tell you, as the day went on, it kept sinking in deeper that my child could have disappeared today and maybe never seen again. I held her a little tighter and kept her a lot closer. She is such a precious little girl.

Please say a prayer of thanksgiving with me that nothing happened to Kirsten today, that she was kept safe, and then add a prayer for my nerves and for some widsdom and guidance in what to do from here.


Oh hell YES I would report this to the lady in charge of the program. It is one thing to be irresponsible as a teacher in not being able to control your students. However it is really troubling that a teacher with that small of a class didn't see your child go out the door while someone else was outside. Now maybe there is an explanation from the lady that runs the program as to just "who" this lady was that your child was following. However, in today's society one can never be too complacent in my judgement.

I know when my son was 4 he was in a day care program, as I was working full time away from home at that point and he absolutely hated the program that he was in. One of the "teachers" there was going to start up her own home day care program. He really liked this woman and I thought it was a good idea to keep him consistently with someone. I picked him up after work one day and he proceeds to tell me on the way home that "Mommy, I almost didn't think I would get to see you today, I almost DROWNED!!!" I pulled my car off to the side of the road, asked him to repeat what he said and with his huge grey-green-hazel eyes told me the same thing and he started to well up with tears. I asked him what had happened and he told me that he went to visit a friend of this woman's and that they had a pool at their apartment, and that while he was there he went in and fell into the pool and that someone picked him up as he was going down after splashing around for a few minutes. I just grabbed him and held him and told him all would be OK and that he was NEVER, EVER going back. What really ticked me off was that this woman never mentioned one thing to me about any of it. When I got home I called her house, got her answering machine and I ripped her a new one let me tell you. I promptly called my employer and asked for 2 weeks off, which they gave me and I spent it with my son. It literally petrified him of water. We had to work really hard to get him into a pool which we finally did but it was really hard. Once he learned to swim, he took off like a fish to water, however when I sat and realized what could happen, I could have choked that woman dead on the spot for even having him near any pool without supervision. She never called me back to even say a thing.

I just finished home schooling him for his senior year of high school and he did fantastic. I am really glad that I was able to home school him for the entire 4 years. He did really, really well and wasn't exposed to the element that is apparent in the public school system today. When he goes out with a friend, my husband and I don't have to worry that he will get into trouble. He is very, very responsible and that is a good thing.

I am really glad that this other teacher saw what was happening. God always seems to put an angel where we need them most. Please do call them just to let them know. If they don't know something is going on then they can't correct it. Next time someone else may not be so lucky.

[countmein]

Well, just a little update.
RT, I don't know if this woman was trying to take Kirsten, it could have been that Kirsten was following her outside and the woman didn't even realize it. That means that my four year old could have been left outside alone and God only knows what could have happened then.

I did end up speaking with the lady in charge of the summer program. She didn't have a clue of what happened. I told her and explained to her that I thought that Kirsten was simply allowed to go to the bathroom by herself and when she was done, she started wandering around the halls. Kirsten probably seen this other woman and started following her, all the way up to the outer doors. I told her that, in my opinion, a four year old should not be allowed to go to the bathroom alone and asked why the teacher didn't go looking for her when she didn't return right away. She agreed but couldn't answer why the lady didn't at least go looking for Kirsten. Then when I told her that Kirsten is the type of child that has never met a stranger, and that she would have gotten in a car with someone, can you guess what her response was? And I quote, "Well that is understandable, with her being homeschooled and all". WTH?! Are there no children attending public school that are extremely outgoing and will talk to anyone they meet on the street? Is is only my child that does this? This has NOTHING to do with our homeschooling, it has everything to do with Kirsten's very outgoing personality and the teacher's incompetence!

In the long run, I don't think it did any good talking to this woman.

[RTchoke]

Well, just a little update.
RT, I don't know if this woman was trying to take Kirsten, it could have been that Kirsten was following her outside and the woman didn't even realize it. That means that my four year old could have been left outside alone and God only knows what could have happened then.

I did end up speaking with the lady in charge of the summer program. She didn't have a clue of what happened. I told her and explained to her that I thought that Kirsten was simply allowed to go to the bathroom by herself and when she was done, she started wandering around the halls. Kirsten probably seen this other woman and started following her, all the way up to the outer doors. I told her that, in my opinion, a four year old should not be allowed to go to the bathroom alone and asked why the teacher didn't go looking for her when she didn't return right away. She agreed but couldn't answer why the lady didn't at least go looking for Kirsten. Then when I told her that Kirsten is the type of child that has never met a stranger, and that she would have gotten in a car with someone, can you guess what her response was? And I quote, "Well that is understandable, with her being homeschooled and all". WTH?! Are there no children attending public school that are extremely outgoing and will talk to anyone they meet on the street? Is is only my child that does this? This has NOTHING to do with our homeschooling, it has everything to do with Kirsten's very outgoing personality and the teacher's incompetence!

In the long run, I don't think it did any good talking to this woman.

I'd still be chewing her out for the homeschool comment. :))

That has absolutely nothing to with this situation. These people were in the wrong for 1. allowing your daughter to visit the restroom without an adult 2. not checking to see why she had not returned 3. not bothering to tell you about it and now they can add 4. being total dumb asses and implying you are at fault because you homeschooled.

Seriously, what does that have to do with anything? If anything is shows how incompetent they are because they can't keep track of the children in their care. I do believe they are trying to project their inadequate abilities onto you.

Like I said, I would still be reading that woman the riot act. But I'm like that sometimes. :mrgreen:

[djdudley]

You absolutely need to tell the director - especially since you have the other woman's story to back yours up. The teacher in charge needs to be held accountable for this error and the school needs to take steps to ensure that it doesn't happen again. And if you don't get any satisfaction from the school, you should go to the press.

Imagine the feelings you're having now being multiplied should this person try this again at another school and you didn't do anything to notify the administration.

I Agree!!!!!!!!!!!!!! She is your child, you could be helping save another one!!!!!!!!!!! The school has a duty to protect the youngsters entrusted to it! Time to raise some hell!

[Sinister Rouge]

You should notify the administration. They need to know they have a security issue.
I'm glad things did not end badly.

[angelicmadrigal]

I'm surprised that if they are allowing kids as young as 4 they don't have to be signed in and out.

[jeepers]

1. How do you 'homeschool' a four year old? To me that is just a kid that isn't old enough for kindergarten yet. Unless they're using that for what you a call a kid that doesn't go to preschool?

If so...WTH? Okay, "I homeschooled my kid's preschool". I'm now laughing my everloving ass off at that idea. Preschool isn't mandatory for a reason... Jesus H, what's next? "You mean you homeschool your fetus? Horrors!" Sorry but this is just a ridiculous concept.

2. No kid should go anywhere unsupervised when they're in a supervised program. Period. Not to the bathroom, not outside, not with anyone.

No kid should ever get loose at any point in time. To do so shows that their supervision sucks rocks and can't be trusted.

The fact that this woman didn't immediately throw herself on a sword reveals much. If she has some sort of supervisor, I'd report this to them. Like calling the superintendent of schools office for the district because this was on school property. Ms program supervisor might not be that concerned, but she might change her tune if she gets told that her program is in jeopardy if they don't come up with a better system.

Yep, I'd be hot. I'd be hot even if this weren't my kid.

YOU DON'T LOSE FOUR YEAR OLDS. Not only that, if you react to hearing about it in your program with anything less than apologetic horror, you're in the wrong job.

[EmmanuelGoldstein]

YOU DON'T LOSE FOUR YEAR OLDS.

Not that I haven't been tempted :whistle:

[angelicmadrigal]

Not that I haven't been tempted :whistle:

Trust me after the day I had at work today I KNOW how that feels.

[SaintVegas]

I do not think you were overreacting. I am so sorry to hear that you had to go through this. I have young children myself, and I do not know what I would do if anything like that every happened to one of them.

God bless you in this difficult time!

Thank you for the strong warning about the dangers that are out there.

[Thank you Troops]

And we want our government to take care of stuff for us?

[Pauper66]

http://www.wpxi.com/news/20146589/detail.html