The Wild Child

In the middle of Term 2, mid-June, we got another student in the Special Unit who appeared to be about 7 years old. She had never been to school and spoke only her tribal language (no Kiswahili or English). Her big smile and sparkling eyes invited us to like her right away. Because she had no clue about school, Timothy told me to continue taking care of my three students, and he would oversee Simani as she got used to the school environment.

Term 2 ended about 7 weeks later and Simani had shown her true colors. She walked with a swagger, hitting anyone and everyone. She played grab and run just to get attention, and nothing was off-limits: books, pencils, erasers,, anything I was using to teach, even a novel or water bottle from my backpack. I told my kids not to chase her and sure enough, she would come back, even more annoyed. Eventually most things were returned from some part of the school campus. She camped out in other classrooms where she was equally disruptive. When she wandered off campus, my girls went to retrieve her. She screamed, cried, and kicked. Timothy's oversight was almost nil and she learned nothing in Term 2 except how to be a 7 year old tyrant.

She's back. The other classrooms now deliver her back to our room. Even at recess, the older girls return her as they are finished being nice to her. Timothy is not on campus regularly so she runs amok. She stirs up my kids to a point of no return. She hauls off and hits each of them and then runs. Paul picks up the chase through the room and when he catches her, there is hell to pay. She can produce blood-curdling screams and tears on a moment's notice; Paul is under the tables, over the chairs, and in a corner gloating. It is not the stuff of teaching.

I told Timothy of her escalating frustration, boredom, and aggression. He seemed somewhat surprised and appreciated my concern. Alternatives for Simani were not met with much discussion. Term 3 may turn out to be a course in self-defense for me and mine.