I was approached at the grocery store the other night. A high schooler told me that he has been seeing me pick up my daughters from the bus and wanted to let me know that there was an older kid talking to one of them and has been talking and teasing her about a lot of different things.
Asking her if she liked porn. She is in elementary school. And it became clear about where she had been learning about a few things that have been coming up. Things about "momo" and how to cut your wrists, not so innocent rhymes and songs, and even comebacks like "I just posted on Facebook that you're the meanest sister ever." And while her sister probably was, I was floored that she had said that.
I understand that I can't protect them forever. In fact, I know they will be exposed to more than I want to admit just out of earshot from their parents and teachers, but I implore everyone to have a talk with their kids. We talk to our kids about dirty words and how they may hear them but not allowed to use them until they are much older. We discuss that everyone is different and unique and they are going to see a lot in their lives and they have to decide what to invest time and attention towards. But this is a situation where it requires me to help her come up with an action plan.
Is the school or school bus to blame? No. I will let them know but here's what we did (listen for more!)
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~Coach Nick