I thought I would share my teaching struggle with other parents who teach their children. Although, I’m not usually teaching my child because he goes to public school, I did have him in the Family Yoga class that I taught yesterday. I’ll start by saying that I truly respect parents who can patiently teach, coach or lead a group of kids that includes one of their own. If anyone knows what the behavioral meltdown that occurs in this situation is called, I would love to know.
Something about being a yoga teacher makes me superimpose this idea that I’m supposed to be all patient. I guess my son picked up on this and tested my resolve for what is usually a very short half an hour of Family Yoga. Parents and their children, of at least 4 years of age, are invited to come. The class focuses on some of the animal poses like Cat, Cow, Monkey and other interesting ones like Tree and Triangle. I also bring the balance ball out and let them roll around and stretch on it. I usually enjoy teaching it as much as the kids seem to enjoy taking it.
Even though my son was exclaiming, “Cool!” and “I like this pose!” throughout the class, he also made a point to provide comments at other times – the whole time. He also fell onto one of the adult students a couple of times because he likes to pretend fall. How could I be losing control of the class? I was distracted by his constant interruptions. Usually, I enjoyed introducing the children to all of the fun poses. This time I was wondering how I could have raised a child to be so misbehaved.
What goes through their minds when their parents are teaching? Are they nervous or embarrassed? I know that my son is capable of much better behavior. I have seen him at Cub Scout meetings and in his classroom. He’s not the model attentive student, but he’s not usually the worst either. I would love to hear from parents who have seen their child go from moderate to maniac as soon as they went from parent to teacher.
Here are some related articles that I found helpful:
Dealing with Behavior Problems in Public
How to Quiet Your Little Chatterbox
An Easy Solution to Attention-Seeking Behavior