15+ Stories That Prove Childcare Workers Have Nerves of Steel

Some people may think that a day of work in a kindergarten classroom is devoid of excitement. Everything is quiet and peaceful and children play with toys all day long. But the educators, more than anyone else, know that their work is definitely not easy.

• 2 girls in the group I teach had a fight (they are 5-year-olds). They approached me and said, “Teacher, she threw this at me.” I was worried and started to investigate what happened.
  She said, “She wanted something of mine.” It turned out it was her “private space.” I love smart kids. © Charmaine Ng / Quora
• We were studying the life cycle of fish. I showed a video of fish mating and laying eggs and the eggs hatching. The mating just looks like dancing or hugging. Nothing graphic.
  Anyway, one student asked, “Are they married?” to which another student answered, “How can they be married? They don’t even go to restaurants.” © Christine Payne / Quora

• Several times during my work with a kindergarten class, I encountered some peculiar children. We had a 5-year-old girl who came to the kindergarten class and left having a real tantrum. But she was fine during the day: she played, she didn’t fight with anyone.
  Of course, her mother was nervous, “What are they doing to my little girl in class?” We suggested that she watch the video camera recordings. And it was not in vain, because the mother apologized and realized that the child needed help.
• A kid interrupted story time to ask:
  “Ms. Davis, why are you so fat?”
  “I don’t know, buddy. Some people are just fat. Was that a question about our lesson? Why don’t you sit back down, please.”
  This kid liked to say things for laughs & shock-value. Luckily, I’m good at not reacting. © Pette_Davis / Reddit

• I taught kindergarten for 5 years. The best things I heard was, “This is not a good morning. My dad fired me from the family.” © Kikabennet / Reddit

• I never get angry with kids if they’re being analytical. A girl came up to me and said, “Ms! Ms! You gained weight! You wanna know how I know? Your bum is coming out the sides of the chair!” To be fair, I had indeed gained some weight, and I was sitting on one of those tiny children’s chairs. © futato / Reddit
• My mom is a kindergarten teacher. A few months ago, they were learning about 3D shapes — cones, cubes, etc. One thing she stressed was the use of “big kid words” in school. No longer were they to call round 3D shapes “balls,” they were called spheres. Square 3D shapes weren’t “boxes” but prisms.
  The first thing she showed was a basketball from the gym. “What 3D shape is this?” She asked. “Oh!” A girl answered quickly. “That’s a basketball!” Without missing a beat, the boy next to her whipped around. “No,” he corrected. “That’s a basketsphere.” © Lily Peter / Quora
• I said something cheekily that was like “Aren’t I the coolest thing ever?” and a student piped up and said “No, the coolest things ever are face tattoos.” Not that inappropriate, but really unexpected. © B***Sniffer26 / Reddit

• I studied in school and in the 9th grade, I went to work as a nanny in a kindergarten for the summer. There were children around 5 years old in one group. Once, the educator asked me to watch over them during quiet time. I lay down on the bed and fell asleep, and when I woke up, the children were sitting quietly in a circle and looking at me. The educator never found out that I had fallen asleep during quiet time. © Natalya Kuznetsova
• I worked as the head of a kindergarten. I came to work one day and suddenly the phone rang. I picked up the receiver and heard a voice saying, “The Minister of Education of the region will speak with you.” I was speechless. I heard a stern voice asking if we had electricity, heating, and water. I replied, “Yes, we have everything.”
  It turned out that in one of the groups, the radiator in the dressing room was not working. The educator turned on a heater, and it became warm. However, the parents had decided to tell the minister about the cold radiator, exaggerating the problem a little bit.
• I recently got my very first marriage proposal. A kindergartener looks up at me and says, “Um, when I grow up, I’m gonna marry you.” © JustALuckyDog / Reddit

• Had a 3-year-old girl wear a costume jewelry ring into nursery school when I was teaching in London. I said she needed to take it off and put it away. When she refused to take it off, I asked why. She said it was precious... © Andrew Bennett / Quora
• It was winter. My friend worked as a kindergarten teacher, and I sometimes visited her after lectures. Once, when I got there, my friend and the nanny were getting the children ready for a walk. The kids were already big, 4–5 years old, but they still needed help getting dressed. So, I also joined the process.
  Suddenly, my friend was urgently called by the head of the kindergarten. She asked me to take the children to the yard and run away. And then the whole group of children rushed down the stairs, screaming! And then, from the porch, they somersaulted.
  At first, I was at a loss and could only say, “Children, be careful!” But it was no use. Nobody reacted until I shouted, “Stop!” After I screamed, everyone lined up, and we walked to the playground. Thank goodness, all the children were safe and sound. © Iveta
• You get sick a lot. As one kindergarten teacher told me, “I don’t catch a cold, I keep a cold. You just get used to it.” © Matthew Bates / Quora

• I was working in a facility where an elementary school and kindergarten were in the same building. The mother of one charming girl from my group worked with us. The whole family was vegetarian. Once, we were having lunch, and someone told my colleague that her daughter was eating meat.
  Right then, she turned around in horror, and her child had already stuffed half a bun with a cutlet in her mouth. The mother shouted, “Baby, don’t eat!” The little girl froze with her mouth open. And then she screamed, spitting out pieces of meat, “Mommy, I just wanted to try it.” © Jessica Albrent / Quora
• Once, a mother came to pick up her 2 children very late, around midnight. By this time, the caretaker had already put them to bed. They decided not to wake them up and left them until the morning. In her defense, the mother said that she had been busy in the garden, and no one had cell phones at that time.
• When your wife is a kindergarten teacher, you always have fun crafts to do around the house on the weekend. © stefantribble / Twitter

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