Party in the Potty ! / Bathrooms =No teachers

This post is more relevant for Kindergarten classes that do not have bathrooms in the room. Just like for adults, besides the obvious, the bathroom can be a place to congregate and check yourself in the mirror. At school, it can also be a place to meet up with friends from other classes. It can be a safe place to run to in a game of tag or to get away from the boys ( or girls), be silly, or sing loudly since the bathroom is a place that teachers do not supervise. I often get feedback from parents that their child is too scared to go or does not like go to the bathroom. Reasons can include, it is too dark, there are spiders, the flush is too loud, the big kids are in there, kids look under, it smells ( so true of the boys bathroom ) . Parents, please have a conversation especially at the beginning of the year that includes the topic of the bathroom.Parents, if you continually get reports about bathroom issues/events, please let the teacher know and problems can get addressed individually or with the class. 

GIRLS

Girls also love the buddy system and teachers often encourage it but please emphasize that unlike preschool , girls are not allowed to go in stall with their friends. I often find a “ party in the potty” especially in the large handicap stall. I understand the desire to have a friend with you but it is not allowed in school. I also have to remind kids not to peek under the stalls. I know adults do this in public bathrooms ( we check for feet) but kids do not know we have a strategy, we step back  and we don’t actually look under- kids do !!! .Strategies for checking availability of a stall is also a good things to talk about and practice !!

BOYS

Well, I can’t say I know exactly what goes on in the boys bathroom. It is the one place boys know the teacher can’t go in . That means teachers try to limit the numbers that enter so that it does not become a place for ‘fun and games’. Teachers  don’ t know how many others are already there so there is potential for a ‘party in the potty’ .If your boy likes to sit, needs to sit and thus goes in a stall  please read the ‘bathroom for girls’ entry and see what skills are good to practice before coming to school .( Skills  include door locking and unlocking, preparing the toilet seat, toilet paper, flushing and hand washing)