Son Kicked Off School Bus WWYD?

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  • mickey2
    Advanced Daycare.com Member
    • Dec 2010
    • 334

    #16
    Thank you all for your advice. I am the original poster of this post and I am just so frustrated with my son!

    I will not blame other people for my son's inappropriate choices or actions and my child will respect and listen to his parents, his teachers, his bus driver......etc

    At 7 years old, soon to be 8 he does not lack the maturity to know right from wrong and he should be able to listen. He is not 2 or 3 and I will not treat him like he is. I do have high expectations of my son and I want him to be a good person.

    Some of you seem to think that I am being too harsh but it is my job as a parent to make sure he learns now that there are all kinds of people in this world and he needs to do the right thing and follow rules whether the others do or do not.

    For the past several months he has been warned by my husband and I regarding his not listening to the bus driver for little things. Rather than write reports the bus driver chose to tell us in the hopes that we would deal with these things which we were doing. We support the bus driver as this is HIS bus, his rules. The poor guy has 30 kids to get safely to school. I am not doing my son any favors by taking my sons side and getting angry at the adults in his life who need to lay down the law. I will listen to what my son has to say but ultimately I will side with the grown up in charge.

    We all do child care and we see all this happening day in and day out with our day parents where a dck tells them something that is not the way it was. We know how that works!! Parents take their kids side and poor Sally or Tommy, you actually said no to them and disciplined their kid how dare you?? That is why so many kids run their parents. Because parents allow it.

    At first whenever we were told something we would speak with our son and explain why he was not allowed to stand, speak loudly to , throw things back to these other kids etc. on the bus yet still every so often he would "forget" so we started sending him to his room after school for a period of time and telling him that if these things continued he would be losing some items very dear to him.

    Things would seem to get better for a period of time but then he would do something else that the bus driver had to speak with him about several times.

    We are just done with our son doing things continually AFTER he has been told and explained the reasons why he can not do these things more than once or twice. He should not have to have things repeated to him constantly.

    I think he needs to see that we mean business when we say "listen to the bus driver"

    He does however do many of these things to get a reaction from 3 other boys who ride the bus as well. Like I said he is a show off and a follower. He will do anything to get attention from these kids who do "egg him on"

    The swearing at the two boys and the suspension from riding the bus is the last straw. This is out of character for him and I was actually shocked and could not believe that he used the word that he did and he denied it at first. Then he admitted to me that he did. I may seem mean but he was warned that if he ever got suspended from riding the bus that he would lose everything! As badly as I feel about doing this, and I really do, I must follow through. This is going to be much harder on me than it is him trust me!

    Monday Tuesday and Wednesday are the days that he will not be allowed to ride the bus.
    These 3 days I must provide care and my day children start arriving at 6 30 am so driving him is not an option unless I cancel my days which will greatly inconvenience my parents. I will need to cancel 7 children!
    Him walking to school is not an option because we live a 20 minute drive from the school so it would take a good 1 1/2 hour for him to get there by foot and where we live it would be a very long cold slippery walk this time of year.

    My son will be sitting in his room at his desk doing school work from 9 am until 3 pm each of these days! It will not be fun to stay home with mommy trust me!

    I have decided that he will lose everything! All his toys, his wii and all his wii games, ds and ds games, all his music (ipod) his TV etc for 2 weeks.
    He will be allowed to read books or draw pictures or be just be involved in conversation with us from the time he gets off the bus each day which is roughly 4 pm until we eat at 6. So for 2 hours a day for 2 weeks to not have his things is not that harsh of a punsihment and he will see that I mean business.

    After 2 weeks he will be able to earn things back.

    I will be speaking with the bus driver daily as well as getting a daily report from his teacher each day. Each day that he has earned it he will be allowed to watch a 1/2 hour tv show until the end of this school year. He may or may not be allowed more TV time after school is done for the year but we will see how it goes.

    This is not going to kill him and in my opinion will make him a better little person who is likeable by all adults.

    Comment

    • Jewels
      Daycare.com Member
      • Aug 2010
      • 534

      #17
      I agree with you, I do not think you are being to harsh, he is paying for his mistakes after being warned, and you are carrying out your threats, good for you, for disciplining your child, I also would never go in and stick up for my son, he does something wrong he needs to pay for. Your good, you love your child, and your teaching him a lesson.

      Comment

      • jen
        Advanced Daycare.com Member
        • Sep 2009
        • 1832

        #18
        I agree with you as well. I don't think that you are being too harsh.

        By teaching him these things now, you'll avoid a whole host of problems later on; not to mention raising a strong, independent child who knows how to think and act for himself.

        Kuddos to you Mom!!!

        Comment

        • youretooloud
          Advanced Daycare.com Member
          • Mar 2011
          • 1955

          #19
          I agree that I would NOT ever go stick up for him, or bail him out of this mess, OR ask if the other boys were also thrown off the bus. The other boys may have provoked him, but they may not have done the misbehaving. (there ARE times when you have to stick up for him... but, this isn't one of them)

          If other kids can talk a seven year old into getting in trouble, then when he's seventeen, he will be easily talked into much more serious issues. He needs to learn now at age seven that he's responsible for his choices.

          I watched a kid about 10 years ago that was always being thrown off the bus for fighting, or fighting at the bus stop. Mom would take a day off of work to go stick up for him. Her point was "What happened to the kids he was fighting with.. they obviously provoked him, they should have the same punishment" But, it wasn't always the same kid... so, the school tried to reason with mom, that if it's always a different kid, clearly YOUR kid is the common denominator here, and HE'S responsible. But, she'd argue his way out of a punishment every time. Until he turned 16. He beat up a 17 yr old so badly that the kid has permanent brain damage. The 17 yr old was just sitting on M's car. M is being tried as an adult, and is sitting in an adult prison right now waiting for trial.

          I really believe that if Mom had handled the problem when we was five and six, that he'd be on the wrestling team or the star of the football team right now instead of waiting for his trial.

          Comment

          • Unregistered

            #20
            Really?!

            Way too harsh! I'm glad you're not my mom.

            If you want to punish him, fine, punish him. I'm not saying that he doesn't deserve a punishment. But what you're doing is akin to putting him on lock down. There are convicted criminals with more than what you're going to be allowing him. Even those in segregation get an hour of yard time a day before they have to go back to their cells! He's 7 and he said some bad words... he didn't knife anyone!

            I'm pretty tough on my kids, but this is way overboard. You asked wwyd, but it seems that you already had your mind made up, so why did you bother to post?

            Comment

            • mickey2
              Advanced Daycare.com Member
              • Dec 2010
              • 334

              #21
              Originally posted by Unregistered
              Way too harsh! I'm glad you're not my mom.

              If you want to punish him, fine, punish him. I'm not saying that he doesn't deserve a punishment. But what you're doing is akin to putting him on lock down. There are convicted criminals with more than what you're going to be allowing him. Even those in segregation get an hour of yard time a day before they have to go back to their cells! He's 7 and he said some bad words... he didn't knife anyone!

              I'm pretty tough on my kids, but this is way overboard. You asked wwyd, but it seems that you already had your mind made up, so why did you bother to post?


              Lucky for my son that I am his mom because I care! He will only have 3 days of experiencing "lock down" and not a life sentence.

              I will betcha a million $$$ he does not do anything again that will ever result in suspension of his bus privileges. I will also bet that he does not turn out to be a convicted criminal by the time he is 16.

              I love my son more than anything in the world and although I am very tough & firm, I am still very fair with my child. I have raised 4 other children much the same way as I am raising my young son and despite me being "too harsh" they have turned out to be very successful wonderful young men and women who have great jobs and have started their own families. They are now 30, 27, 26 and 23 years of age so in the past my harshness has resulted in producing great grown kids.

              Being harsh and strict in my opinion is the best thing you can do for your kids.
              I am not out to be their best friend when they are little.

              I will say though, that my older kids ARE my friends now and they all love me and thank me.

              Comment

              • Abigail
                Child Care Provider
                • Jul 2010
                • 2417

                #22
                To the OP, I agree with your punishment. I had a strict mom growing up and turned out well! LOL.

                You should stick to your word about taking away all his electronic toys as you mentioned. I do have two other recommendations though. I would get a quote from a cab company to drive him to/from school for three days and have him do chores to pay you back for the cab. Here it is $10 to and from each day for cabs to bring students, but I'm not sure if that is a flat rate or not. It was $5 each way and my friend payed me that to bring his daughter to school because he knew me and not the cab driver. LOL. The other recommendation I have for your son to do is to write a letter to the bus driver saying he is sorry, etc.

                Removing his electronics (I would for one week because I know how hard it is to go without technology and think two weeks is too long) and making him attend school with a cab and work for you to pay you back for those days, and writing a letter to the bus driver is plenty for a punishment of this kind.

                Comment

                • MyAngels
                  Member
                  • Aug 2010
                  • 4217

                  #23
                  Originally posted by Children First
                  Lucky for my son that I am his mom because I care! He will only have 3 days of experiencing "lock down" and not a life sentence.

                  I will betcha a million $$$ he does not do anything again that will ever result in suspension of his bus privileges. I will also bet that he does not turn out to be a convicted criminal by the time he is 16.

                  I love my son more than anything in the world and although I am very tough & firm, I am still very fair with my child. I have raised 4 other children much the same way as I am raising my young son and despite me being "too harsh" they have turned out to be very successful wonderful young men and women who have great jobs and have started their own families. They are now 30, 27, 26 and 23 years of age so in the past my harshness has resulted in producing great grown kids.

                  Being harsh and strict in my opinion is the best thing you can do for your kids.
                  I am not out to be their best friend when they are little.

                  I will say though, that my older kids ARE my friends now and they all love me and thank me.
                  No advice here, but I just wanted to say good for you! It's nice to see parents who are responsible for actually parenting their children, and not trying to be their best friend at the expense of raising them to be good, responsible citizens. You go girl.

                  Comment

                  • Blackcat31
                    • Oct 2010
                    • 36124

                    #24
                    Originally posted by Unregistered
                    Way too harsh! I'm glad you're not my mom.

                    If you want to punish him, fine, punish him. I'm not saying that he doesn't deserve a punishment. But what you're doing is akin to putting him on lock down. There are convicted criminals with more than what you're going to be allowing him. Even those in segregation get an hour of yard time a day before they have to go back to their cells! He's 7 and he said some bad words... he didn't knife anyone!

                    I'm pretty tough on my kids, but this is way overboard. You asked wwyd, but it seems that you already had your mind made up, so why did you bother to post?
                    Which is exactly why a majority of criminals are repeat offenders! The punishment for a crime needs to make a strong impact! If it doesn't it does not detour the person from doing it again!

                    The OP asked wwyd because she wanted other opinions...parents do that sometimes....even if they already had an idea of what they had planned...it is still nice to throw it out there and see if you are on the right track or not.
                    THAT'S what makes her a good mom!

                    When I was a kid, I purposely missed the bus after my dad would not give me permission to catch a ride home with an older friend who just got their license. So when this friend dropped me off at home I walked in thinking I was so smart and my dad drove me straight back to school and made me walk home! We lived 9 miles from school!

                    My parents were strict and I can honestly say that I thought they were harsh, but I look back now and I see how their harsh way of thinking paid off...they raised 6 productive, dependable, and law abiding children. RARELY did we ever repeat a bad behavior as children......because the punishment was strict enough to detour us from repeat behavior!

                    Children First: I think you are handling it right and teaching your son a valuable lesson.

                    Comment

                    • cheerfuldom
                      Advanced Daycare.com Member
                      • Dec 2010
                      • 7413

                      #25
                      Children First, after re-reading your entire posts and all the backstory, I have now changed my mind. This obviously was far from an isolated incident and you have given your son numerous consequences with no permanent change. The fact that you have stayed consistent, have various authority figures involved, etc. shows that you have really done your homework and taken this situation seriously. Also, I now understand that this is 3 days, not 2 full weeks. I agree that it is better to err on the side of strict than permissive and see that you are doing this in your son's best interest and as a last resort. He can keep up with his schoolwork (as there is no alternative to get him to school) and he will not die from a few days of "lockdown". Good for you to remain firm on boundaries. Disregarding authorities, swearing, following the crowd and doing bad things for attention are all things that need to stop now.

                      Comment

                      • Unregistered

                        #26
                        Really?

                        What a waste of a thread if you come on here and ask wwyd and then are only prepared to listen to the people who agree with you.

                        I'm tough on my kids, but I make the punishment fit the crime.

                        But hey, whatever works for you. As you said, you've successfully raised children already, don't know why you needed to come here to get confirmation on your parenting style.

                        Comment

                        • Unregistered

                          #27
                          Don't you think staying home from school is a privledge? I believe your child will again act up knowing that his punishment is avoiding school, somthing many kids work hard to find a way out of.

                          You might be mean and make him stay in his room and do his homework etc but missing school should never be an option. Missing school might be just what this kid is looking to do in the first place.

                          Comment

                          • jen
                            Advanced Daycare.com Member
                            • Sep 2009
                            • 1832

                            #28
                            Originally posted by Unregistered
                            What a waste of a thread if you come on here and ask wwyd and then are only prepared to listen to the people who agree with you.

                            I'm tough on my kids, but I make the punishment fit the crime.

                            But hey, whatever works for you. As you said, you've successfully raised children already, don't know why you needed to come here to get confirmation on your parenting style.
                            I'm fairly certain that she is free to chat about and discuss anything on this board that she'd like...probably more so than some as she is a registered member.

                            Please feel free not to participate if you don't agree with the topic of conversation.

                            Comment

                            • cheerfuldom
                              Advanced Daycare.com Member
                              • Dec 2010
                              • 7413

                              #29
                              sometimes it helps to post things and that gets all your thoughts straight. Sometimes you change your mind, sometimes the posting confirms what you originally felt was right.

                              Comment

                              • mickey2
                                Advanced Daycare.com Member
                                • Dec 2010
                                • 334

                                #30
                                Thank you so much everyone especially those of you who have been supportive. Trust me I am not having a fun day today! ::

                                My son is NOT happy so neither is anyone else in this house.

                                Yes my mind was pretty much made up before I posted but I felt so bad I needed to see what others thought. I hoped a few of you would be supportive and at least make me feel a bit better about punishing him. We have been having problems with him for a while so we had to do something drastic as the warnings and sending him to his room after school for a period of time did not work.

                                I hate to do this to my son, I love him terribly and hate to see him upset. But that is the problem with so many parents. We see it all the time those of us who do daycare. Many do not want to have the aggravation of dealing with a child who gets so upset and continuously lets you know about it. Not having any peace at all because the child you are disciplining won't stop and leave you alone is the reason why parents give in and give up. I won't give in and I won't give up no matter how tough it gets and trust me. Today it is tough going!

                                We are on Day #1 today and wow is it brutal for me! I knew this was going to be harder on myself than him!

                                He is now watching his 1/2 hour of TV and then it is bedtime. I think he earned it today.

                                Comment

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