Ketchup Explosion & Holiday Pictures

Big E is 5 1/2 years old and is in Kindergarten with other 5 and 6 year olds. What do we know about 5-6 year olds??? Hmmm let's think about it.



1) like to test limits

2) love to learn about things and their properties (explorers)

3) think the littlest thing is hilarious and will continue to do it until someone else stops them

4) last but not least, will do all these things to a greater degree the less supervision there is.



These are just some of the many things we know about little boys. "we" meaning other moms of boys and anyone else out there with the least experience with boys. That is why I would think that those with degrees in education would understand this . . . not at Big E's school apparently.



While standing outside "the best school" in the county, I was speaking with Big E's best friend's mom, who had been contacted at home b/c her son was squirting ketchup at lunch. When Big E walks out from school (4 hours AFTER lunch) he has ketchup on his face and shirt. When asked why, he tells me that best friend #1 did it.



As an aside . . . We hop in the car and I hear someone yelling Big E's name. It's his teacher calling out b/c my darling son left his coat (in 38 degree weather) inside. It wasn't his coat, but he DID forget it and we are going to COLORADO for the week. Not a place to not have a coat. We were able to get the coat, with an unhappy and hurried mom who needs to p/u Special K in 20 minutes. P/U time is a artfully crafted hour so I can p/u both boys, who are 20 min apart in 1/2 hour.



I digress . . . back to exploding ketchup . . . So best friend #1 squirts Big E with ketchup all over his face and light blue standard school attire shirt. "But, he wasn't trying to squirt me or anyone" Big E says. "it just went out the wrong end." Hmm this is starting to get interesting. I say nothing. "When you twist the baggies of ketchup, they explode" Big E says with enthusiasm and a great sense of knowledge. "They explode?" I ask. "Yeah, so we explode them into our mouth [best friend #1] just missed 'cause it went out the wrong end." he continues. I am actually trying not to laugh at this situation as I listen to the story and get a mental image of 4-5 5 year old boys twisting ketchup packets until they explode and catching the explosion in their mouth (by the way apparently the packs are NOT touching their mouths during these explosions, the contents are just supposed to land there.) Now, unfortunately best friend #1's explosion did not end up in his mouth but over my Big E. Also unfortunate . . . best friend's mom got called at home and he will have to eat in the office for 1 week.



Is this situation not the epitome of young boy exploration. This is experimentation of what happens to something under pressure. What a cool thing to learn. The environment is rich with opportunities for exploration and science. These same boys have tested what happens to all of their food trash when they put it into baggies and start swinging it around or stomp on it. How about when you mix a whole bunch of different types of food and drink and slosh it all together. Hmmmm a lovely mixture that little boys will find delightful and full of laughs. This is physics and chemistry . So where is the psychology of the whole thing? Not with the ONLY 2 teachers who are in charge of a whole room full of 7 classes of Kindergartners. Remember "what we know about 5-6 year old boys" #4? because we are also dealing with math . . . inverse relationship of supervision to this exploration behavior)



I have to say, I am not even angry. In fact, I think it's quite funny. It helps that Big E didn't get in trouble, but I have called best friend #1's mom to tell her the whole story so she can advocate for her son that he was NOT the only one participating, poor guy just got a bad ketchup baggie. Now that being said, we did have a talk this afternoon about "would you do this at home?" "would you have done this in Miss. M's class"(from last year). His answer is no. A small teaching moment.



My question is WHY would you leave only 2 teachers and the hope of parent volunteers to be in charge of at least 100 to 150 kindergartners and 1st graders. THIS is what 5 & 6 year olds DO. Why is it expected that these children are supposed to go from complete supervision, to the lack thereof overnight, and actually behave. ESPECIALLY when they learn that ketchup packets explode when you twist them. No one ever told them NOT to do that before.



So . . . as we drive to pick up Special K, Big E says . . . "so that is why my face looks like it was in a food fight for my picture today." Yes, it was a picture day and NO ONE thought to help my son wipe his face off BEFORE the picture or even before the end of the day. Merry Cheers of a festive background, with my handsome son (who just had his hair cut yesterday) in his light blue standard school attire shirt with KETCHUP all over his face and shirt. I can't WAIT to get this one.



I'll add pictures when they come in . . .