If you son had a deadly peanut allergy and a child at school knew it and taunted him with a peanut butter?

Posted on 26. Jan, 2012 by admin in Children

Question by Chrissy: If you son had a deadly peanut allergy and a youngster at school knew it and taunted him with a peanut butter?
sandwich at lunch. What would you do?
My son is protected beneath Title 504 in a public school for his serious peanut allergy. It has been a lengthy road, but my son is quite conscious of his allergy and of the individuals about him and to steer clear of anybody with peanut butter. Our choice as a household was not to isolate our son at a peanut free table (which generally does not exist at the school…he theoretically would be sitting by himself.)
These days he tells me that a girl was purposely taunting him with peanut butter after he told her that he could possibly die if he ingested any. She held a sandwich in the air close to his face and waved it in a circle and yelled “oooooo” … My son and a friend told the teacher following lunch what she had carried out and the girl was called aside privately and spoken to.
Ought to I take any much more action with the school? A telephone call? A letter to the teacher? What would you do?
He is in the third grade.
Wow what a excellent response. And all have been so beneficial! I genuinely appreciated all of your responses… properly almost all : )… Anyway I sent a note to the teacher thanking her and asking her to call me soon after school. Stay tuned for an update.
The teacher called and I immediately thanked her on the guidance of many of you. Then I asked her what she knew of the situation to make particular it is the exact same version as I had heard…and it was to a “T”. I asked her what she said to the little girl and she told me that she pulled her aside and told her that her behaviour was not acceptable due to the fact the peanuts could harm my son or even kill him…and to Never ever do it once more. I asked the teacher if the message had sunk in and she said completely that she felt the girl was really sorry. She also stated that she did not really feel this girl was a difficulty maker or purposely attempting to hurt my son.. just a “kid being a kid” as a handful of of you termed. I asked her if it was attainable for herself or the school nurse or myself to come to the classroom to educate the students on food allergies. She right away was really positive and mentioned that she hadn’t completed so till now not to potentially embarrass my son. So..tomorrow his grade will hear all. Thanks!!!!!!!

Best answer:

Answer by Genie
Youngsters don’t realise how serious it is thats all – I would leave it now she has been spoken too.

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37 Comments

Mr.Triple-Double

26. Jan, 2012

A letter to the principal, and a doctor’s note saying how deadly the peanut butter could be. If the principal does not do anything hen I’d take the child to court.

crazypinneaple

26. Jan, 2012

i’d call the school
i’m pretty sure there’s a law saying that they have to keep kids with allergies safe, and if he didn’t know better, he would have eaten it

Erik A

26. Jan, 2012

A law suit would be in order. There isn’t any tollernce for that kind of behavior.

cambrexia

26. Jan, 2012

Just let it be for now.
If she does it again,
call her parents.
Then consider taking further action if she keeps doing it.

Alissa J

26. Jan, 2012

Sounds to me like the matter is already being taken care off, but if is still nagging you then you could call or write a letter to the teacher. :-)

supersteeze

26. Jan, 2012

school districts usually comply when you say “well my lawyer seems to think” and then say “I think the Media might agree but I haven’t contacted them……… yet” worked for me :)

Knome Lover

26. Jan, 2012

Kids will be kids…the schools can’t stop that kind of stuff…they worry more about hugging and kissing than someone who is actually being harassed

rookem123

26. Jan, 2012

She probably just didn’t get it, but I think the school acted appropriately. If it keeps up I would say more, but it sounds like the situation was taken care of.

IslaVistaLife

26. Jan, 2012

make sure that when he is old enough to have girlfriends his girlfriends dont eat any peanut butter either. kiss of death.

vtx.1800retro

26. Jan, 2012

call the teacher and thank her for understanding the seriousness of your sons problem, and for taking care of the situation with the girl.
thats all you need to do.

krazykatmeow

26. Jan, 2012

i would send an e-mail to the teacher w/ the principal on copy tonight.

tomorrow morning i would go to the school and have a talk w/ the principal. and make it very clear that this kind of s*** can’t be happening, and if it happens again, that you will let the school superintendent know….

astralpen

26. Jan, 2012

This is technically assault. You could involve the police if you want.

Dave

26. Jan, 2012

If you chose not to isolate him, things like this are going to happen. The school took it seriously enough…the girl is too stupid to realize that she was potentially down for a murder or manslaughter rap.

lala w

26. Jan, 2012

i would tell my son to stay away from the girl

MissDee

26. Jan, 2012

I would make it known to everyone…if faculty at the sbhool didnt respact it…i wld seriuosly consider moving your son to a private school..or home schooling.

Anonymous Girl

26. Jan, 2012

If that was my son and he could die from it i would go straight to the principle and sue!

Sherry G

26. Jan, 2012

i would ask the teacher about the proble. and then talk to a head person at his school and see wat they would do and say.

stayc

26. Jan, 2012

How old is your child and the children taunting him?
Kids can be mean. They are worse now then when I was a child.
I would address the situation to the principle. A letter sent with a follow up phone call.

a m a n d a .

26. Jan, 2012

ohh my god what an evil little brat! i think you should let it go for right now.. unless it happens again. you didnt mention how old he was.. but that’s horrible. if this little girl does this again.. then notify school officals.

marge

26. Jan, 2012

She was just being a kid. It’s what they do. He wasn’t harmed. He knows not to eat it. She has been disciplined. What more do you want. Electric chair?!

Jill P

26. Jan, 2012

I think you should, this child is being selfish and thinking only of herself. Your child’s life is at risk. The parents should be more aware about this and how would they feel if it was their child.all the best with it

fool_of_ a_ took

26. Jan, 2012

I think I would follow this up with a VISIT to the school. I know we parents tend to take things a little too far sometimes, but this is serious business. I’m sure the little girl was just having innocent fun without realizing what the consequences could be. During this visit, I would speak with both the teacher and principal, this is a life or death situation and should be handled as such. I’m sure that the girls parents would be mortified to learn of her behavior.

juliaxilyy

26. Jan, 2012

i would call the kids parents and let them take care of it. you shouldn’t let anyone endanger your son’s health like that.

Gotta Luv It!

26. Jan, 2012

their young and don’t know any better, go see the principle first and if things don’t get any better, go above the principle!

Jenna

26. Jan, 2012

You should go down to the school and talk to the principal.
That’s just wrong.
Set up a meeting with the principal and possibly the girls parents.
She may not understand the seriousness of the situation but she needs to be taught it.

smokedat

26. Jan, 2012

I personally wouldnt take any further action besides makeing sure my son new the outcome of actually eating the peanut butter.Kids are going to be kids.Once a kid finds out something about another kid they are going to see if its the truth.She probably isnt going to be doing that ever again and possibly didnt mean anything by it.

Serge M

27. Jan, 2012

It seems the teacher already handled it properly. You may want to talk to the teacher and thank her, emphasizing again the severity of the issue. If it happens again with the same person, the teacher or the school principal should discuss it with the girl’s parents. But at this stage I would leave it alone.

greentoadgreentreefrog

27. Jan, 2012

i would probly go to the kids parents a slap them in the face and then spit in there eyes and as for the kid slap her with a peice of cheese

~Shortstuff~

27. Jan, 2012

Touch base with the teacher on this matter & while you’re at it, you can thank her for having spoken to that girl, if it would make you feel better. Kids can be so cruel.

*greentoad…You find this real humorous huh?

artistagent116

27. Jan, 2012

I think the situation was handled properly. I understand your concern with your son’s allergy and his health. This is just children “being children”. Teasing is part of growing up, and it sounds as if the school handled it as well as can be expected.
The bottom line is, your son knows not to eat peanut butter, so no physical harm was done. The emotional harm is (I hate to say it) part of being a kid in school.

I hope I’ve helped.

percypotter

27. Jan, 2012

Let it go now but if it happens again tell the school.

crankyissues

27. Jan, 2012

I am guessing that the little girl does NOT know the real harm that she could have done- Kids are mean, and they don’t really believe that “someone could die from peanut butter”…… your son is responsible- Just be sure he keeps you informed and if the girl is still giving him crap- then do something further. You don’t want to embarrass your son, and it sounds like he will tell you if he is worried.

Stephen H

27. Jan, 2012

The teacher took the appropriate initial action. If there is a repeat, THEN you can escalate your response. Thank the teacher for taking quick action in this instance, this will make her aware of YOUR awareness of what happened, and give her some encouragement to keep an eye on things without it being you breathing down her, and the schools, neck to get her to do so.

crazychickstral

27. Jan, 2012

i would have a word with the school head and ask that they could ask the staff to keep an eye out at meal times to make sure that he dont get taunted with food with peanuts in as u are a little concerned about it

kleo

27. Jan, 2012

Let it go…the teacher talked to the girl – hopefully she understands now. Kids will be kids…they don’t quite grasp death and that sort of thing yet, so you can’t really blame them. Sure, she was a little brat but most kids don’t understand the severity of that situation. If your kid is already protected under title 504 then the school is aware…just tell your kid to stay strong, watch what he eats and make sure he has a good teacher who will look out for him in those situations. Don’t push the issue, though. This is just a little girl being bratty.

Jess

27. Jan, 2012

If the teacher speaks with the girl and her parents, I personally wouldn’t take any more action. It sounds like your son knows about his allergy and is smart enough to know his limits, and it’s good that he got the teacher involved. Kids will be kids – it’s amazing how mean they can be to each other at times. There is no way to “peanut-proof” your son, but making him aware and involved is a great thing to do and will most likely keep him safer in the long run.

Puzzler

27. Jan, 2012

I would most definitely contact the school authorities (principal) about the incident. Not to get the girl into more trouble (she probably did not take the situation seriously and may not even have believed what your son told her). However, EVERYONE (adult) at you son’s school needs to know about his condition in case some emergency (accidentally) occurs during the school day.