My class shares a bathroom with the kindergarten class next door which means the doors on both sides need to be locked....and then unlocked. In the event that someone forgets to unlock one side, the next nearest bathroom is down the hall. For a kindergartner or ahem.. teacher, who suddenly realizes that they waited just a tad too long to go to the bathroom, the distance can be excruciating!!!
Today, while I was talking to my assistant, I opened the bathroom door on our side only to find that it was already occupied. I don't know who was more surprised...me or the little boy from next door! "Hey" he yelled as he desperately attempted to hide himself "somebody is in here!!!" I quickly closed the door and told him that I hadn't realized he was in there since the door on our side was unlocked. Bless his heart, I remember once when I had the same thing happen to me........
In one elementary school I worked in about twelve years ago, we had a single restroom in each kindergarten classroom. I don't have to explain to anyone who has been a kindergarten teacher why this arrangement works better. Kindergartners get so wrapped up in what they are doing that they have been known to take flight in the middle of an activity when they realize that nature calls. There were no locks on the doors so that a child wouldn't accidentally lock themselves in.
One afternoon, right after my assistant had taken our students out for recess, I decided to slip into the restroom since I had a few minutes to myself. I had been in there all of ten seconds when someone began pushing the door open. They pushed hard!!!! I yelled "Hey! Wait a minute! Someone is in here!" and pushed back with all my might. A child in my classroom, who I will refer to as D, yelled back "Well, move over! I gotta go bad!" Evidently he had waited until he couldn't wait any longer before running back into the classroom. We continued to have a shoving match with the door. Can you picture a teacher desperately trying to put herself back together while trying to keep a five year old out who just as desperately wants to get in? It wasn't a pretty picture. After that, I always managed to wait until I got to the faculty lounge before I used the facilities.
When I accidentally walked in on the poor little guy today, I know just how he felt!
On a side note, my blogging buddy Shell at Things I Can't Say has a precious little boy named Mason who is in a baby contest. If you are so inclined, she would love it if you would go and vote for him. It is really easy...you just click where she shows you to or click on his name .....and voila! He is Mason Samuel and he is on the fifth row.
On a side note, my blogging buddy Shell at Things I Can't Say has a precious little boy named Mason who is in a baby contest. If you are so inclined, she would love it if you would go and vote for him. It is really easy...you just click where she shows you to or click on his name .....and voila! He is Mason Samuel and he is on the fifth row.
