The Chronicles of a Veteran Kindergarten Teacher

Show and tell is a favorite among Kindergartners. They can't wait to bring in something from home to share with their peers. These days we have strict criteria for what qualifies as show and tell, but when I first started teaching, I pretty much gave the children free reign to bring in toys, objects, etc.

One year really sticks out in my memory. A little boy had raided his Dad's briefcase before he left for school. He was proud of his Dad and wanted to show off something that belonged to him. He got up in front of the class and said he wanted to show a card his Daddy had in his briefcase. It was a very explicit greeting card  complete with a picture of the X rated nature and I quickly snatched it up and asked him if his Mom knew he had taken the card. I asked him if his Mother or Dad knew that he had brought the card and he confessed that they did not. The first sentence that the child's father had written inside the card made me blush and I quickly closed it. I got on the phone and called the child's Mom and told her about the card.

To my amazement, she was at my classroom door asking for it in a very short time. When I handed it to her and she opened it, she looked furious. Thinking she was upset with me, I told her that I was sorry but that I  thought she hadn't known that her son brought it to school and was sure she would want to know about it.  She looked up and said "This card isn't addressed to me!!! and stormed off. Dumbfounded, I went back into the classroom. Sure enough, when my assistant and I checked the child's information sheet, his mother's name was different than the one the card was addressed to. I felt so bad about that and have no idea what the outcome was.

Note to parents.....be sure to screen items your child brings in for show and tell.