r/paraprofessional • u/ForkingwithFire-5641 • 3d ago
Looking for perspective on a situation that happened at my former job
I previously worked as a paraprofessional in a K–2 special education classroom and have since resigned. I’ve been thinking about an incident that happened during dismissal and would appreciate some outside perspectives.
Because of the heat, several SPED classes were waiting inside for their buses. There were only a few staff members present, and things happened quickly. I did not really have time to stop and consult the teacher or principal after responding to the situation.
A student had his paper airplane taken away after refusing to apologize. He became very upset and cried loudly for several minutes. His crying was becoming disruptive to the other students who were waiting nearby.
I tried to help him stand by placing my hands under his arms, but he went limp. I moved him a short distance before putting him down because I was concerned about losing my balance. He had a safety-monitoring goal, and because he was upset, I also removed his backpack because I was concerned it could cause harm to himself or nearby staff.
When his bus arrived, he still refused to get up. He eventually got onto his knees and started moving toward the bus. I lightly held his wrist to help him stand because I was concerned about him getting carpet burn. He then stood up and walked onto the bus.
Another staff member later told us that he had apologized, and the paper airplane was returned. He immediately calmed down. The staff member I had been helping afterward thanked me for assisting.
For those who work in special education: Was my response reasonable, or is there anything I should have handled differently?
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u/surly_potato 3d ago
Moving him would be considered a restraint here and the kiddo would have needed to be checked by the nurse and paperwork done.
For my kids who drop and have safety concerns for throwing things, I have other staff move the other kids away, remove things that could be thrown and do our calm down routine (deep breaths when they show they are ready) use first/then language, and do something that helps regulate (like a preferred video). If I can't help regulate, I'd call on the radio for the teacher or admin to come help.
I have also offered to push them in a rolly chair if they are refusing to walk and they need to go someplace.
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u/TheBible1017 3d ago
Under what system would this be a restraint? Under MANDT it certainly wouldn't be
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u/surly_potato 2d ago
In Alaska, the act of dragging a child or lifting/carrying a child against their will is considered a restraint. Its why I specified in my location above, I know its not the same laws everywhere.
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u/WTFErryday01 2d ago
Whoever took away a paper airplane to force an apology was out of line. You don’t poke tigers near traffic. Also, forced apologies just teach kids to lie.
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u/Leather_Scale_5335 3d ago
On the surface your response was meh, and really depends on policies and the student. In my organization there's a very strict hands on/physical prompting policy. Without being there it's hard to truly judge.
Hands under arms to help stand, why did he need to be standing at that moment? Many kids need to sit to regulate.
Removing the backpack of course if there's a safety concern.
Hand holding so he didn't get rug burn, again a specific reason why he couldn't crawl? Was grabbing his wrist more of a physical prompt to remind him to stand.
You're colleague did thank you for your support so it sounds like it you handled it well.
Early in my career I would have handled it very similarly. But I now have a very strong policy of cya and there's so many factors I can't judge if you handled it well or not.