Other side of the table

This morning I dropped off Bella at Sunnyside ( the new amazing daycare that we LOVE up at KU) and I was stopped by the morning lead teacher. We had a great conversation about how my little angle might be a bit more aggressive then your average toddler. It was kind of a surreal moment for me as a teacher since I have so often been on that side of the table, finding delicate ways to tell a parent that their kid is not doing exactly what is expected. The teacher did it beautifully, he started with a compliment about how well drop offs are going, he talked about it as the behavior of aggression never about Bella as the child. I found myself a little disappointed that she is still biting, and hitting although my mother would look at me, smile and say "Karma baby." It's something Eric and I already know about and do our best to change the negative behaviors at home with positive reinforcement, redirection and time outs. I told him to let me know what they use there so we can be consistent at home finding that I wanted so much to be the "good parent" the one that supports the teacher, and school and the child at home. I think having a child has truly made me a better teacher at least in my communication with parents. They are no longer the opposition, I can see their point of view because their child is their jewel as Bella is mine. It's a pretty surreal feeling to be on this side, I think my daughter is the most amazing child I've ever met but nobody is perfect. Maybe one of these days we'll find her in her room with her stuffed animals lined up telling them "no hitting, not biting, no pinching, no scratching, no punching" Exactly like I did at age 4. Ahhh Karma.
~Trish