How would you approach a grieving student?
The question may seem obvious, however not all teachers seem to care that much. I lost my papa in August 2022, which really had a negative impact on me. I was 15 at the time and a freshman in high school. When I returned to school after around a week, things didn’t go too well, I would get angry more easily and it nearly cost me some friendships. But, one of my teachers, who knew I was autistic, didn’t seem to take the right approach. Every time I get overwhelmed, I tend to freak out or have a panic attack at times, which she would tell me to “stop” instead of actually calming me down. She even once threatened to send me to the principal. That really made me really upset, because I was not a bad kid at all, I was someone who was still grieving a loved one. And yes, I moved on now, and I don’t use death as an excuse for anything, but I still miss him, and she knew what I was going through at the time. All I needed was support and guidance, not being treated as a troublemaker. In November 2022, I wrote a little song about it, a rap freestyle. Which I won’t share here, as I have zero rapping skills and it was just me in my creative mind to cope with the situation. If any of you are teachers or former teachers, how would you deal with a student who’s grieving and gets overwhelmed or angry, not out of being mean, but not knowing how to handle it on their own.
PS: I was the one who apologized to her the same month I wrote that song, although morally, I was the one who needed the guidance the most. I have forgiven her, but I won’t forget.
Have a great day/night!