deafbajagal

I have a new student who likes to bite (a lot) in my class. Should I tell the other kids' parents that there is a biter in the class? I'm worried about confidentiality laws (but I will never tell the parents "who" the biter is unless it is that child's parent). At the same time I feel that parents should know. If my daughter is in the class, I would want to know. My boss says it is up to me, which is another way of saying she doesn't know what to do either.

What do you think? Should I tell the parents?

Deafness

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Reba

Is someone dealing with the biter? I mean, instead of just warning the others, is someone trying to prevent the biter from biting? What do the parents of the biter say?

If the biting problem can be stopped, then it won't be necessary to inform the other parents.

Phillips

Last Fall.. Someone student bite my daughter' s arm.. I took her to Dr..

They didnt tell me who that student did to my daughter

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Brian

deafbajagal, from what I have noticed around here whenever there is health concerns, crime charges against the facility/staff/students, weapons, etc. the principals usually send out open letters to let the parents/guardians know.

What I would advise you to check with the central office about it. As a parent (not a parent yet,) I would want to know too.

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Oceanbreeze

I agree with Brian. I'm not a parent either, and I don't know the legalities of this, but I would want to know, also.

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LuciaDisturbed

Is the biter biting other students, or is she/her biting him/herself? If the biter is biting others, then yes, the parents should be informed, in case the bite breaks the skin. If the biter is biting self, then you should tell the biter's parents about it and tell them to take the child to a psychologist, as it could be a self-injury issue.

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AmAnDaM

If my child was bit by another I would be angry, and say I would probably be even more angry if the problem was known but not mentioned. I say Tell The Parents, maybe they will have tips for you and the parents of the biting child on teaching them to stop.

Ozzie

Your boss is supposed to know what to do!

I found a couple of blurbs which may help you -

"If a child did ever bite another child you had to write a form informing the parent about the bite and where it was and how it happened."


"The rule in one preschool is if your child bites, they are immediately separated from the other kids and the parent is called to come and get them. This way they learn that the behavior is unacceptable. If a child bites 3 times, the parent is asked to keep them home from school for 2 weeks. This was more a punishment for the parent than the child, but it does insure that the parent is addressing the problem."

Cheri

When I worked at a daycare, we had a biter that would bite out of frustration in our classroom, We did informed all the parents about it, We did kept an eye on him, we tried to work with the biter, by telling him "We don't bite", We allowed only a few warnings, It wasn't working, Most of us got bit from him, so my director had to remove him from the daycare for the safely of everyone. He's just not ready to get along with other children, and if I were you, I'll keep an close eye on him, if the problem occurs then you as a teacher and the principal needs to do something about that kid.

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deafbajagal

Hi, all. Since the child is in a special education program, it is illegal in the state that I am to remove that child from the program for time outs/time aways and from the school (e.g., calling the parent to pick up the child)...which sucks for me. The child is new- and bites because she cannot communicate her frustrations. She also bites to get that immediate attention.

I've been working with her using the ABAB behavior training techniques - which is working well. We are substituting the biting with another behavior...when she gets angry, she doesn't bite but squeeze a squeezable ball instead. I am also teaching her how to use words to express her anger: "I am angry. I want ____." It will take a couple of weeks for her to finally master this simple behavior change...but meanwhile I'm paranoid that she will bite another kid. In a hearing daycare, they usually will inform parents (my daughter's daycare informed me that there was a kid who was a "biter.") But with special education, there are so many stupid and tricky laws/rules that I have to be careful with releasing information but at the same time I have to inform parents of potential dangers. So that's why I'm asking for your opinions and feedbacks . Thanks for letting me know.


Ozzie's right...my boss should know what to do and to tell me what the policy is on informing the parents.

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dreamchaser

I am thinking about how you can approach this legally, but I know that a lot of terrible things are transmitted through saliva... I think it is a quandry that you cannot ignore. Good luck I will be asking around for advice that works.. What state are you in? Laws differ.. Good luck,, Jeanie chasing the dream for a better tomorrow for all.

shel90

Hi there..I cant believe that the principal is leaving this up to you. Maybe it is different at your school but where I work at, the administrators take care of issues like these so the burden is not placed on the teachers. My daughter's public school, it is the administrators who send out letters to us, parents, of any incidents of this nature.

I honestly dont know what to say since I dont know what the legal ramfications would be on whatever action you took.

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jillio

I would think that as long as the student's name wasn't released, she should be protected under the law. But I agree that this is a problem that administration should address.

josey

With all the health problems and everything I wold let the parents that you feel that they should know that there is a biter in the class and the school is orking on it and if they ask who them you are unable to say but in the event ( said child ) came home with a bit that is know who and how it got there

MomToDeafChild

I think that until the child actually bites another child, you don't need to notify the parents. But once the first child is bitten you would need to address it. You probably wouldn't be allowed to name names, it would be more like a form letter "FYI, we have a biter in the class. We are working with the child on anger issues to correct this, blah, blah, blah." I know the first thing I'd do is ask my child who the biter was, so I'm sure everyone would find out who it is through the grapevine anyway.

If it was my child who was bitten, I would fully expect the school to tell me who the biter was so that I could call the parents and give them an ear full. It's assault, so the school has to address it somehow even if they are not allowed to remove the child from the classroom. The other children have rights too and should not be subjected to biting in the classroom because one child is out of control.

VamPyroX

You should probably talk with the principal and see what he/she wants to do. With situations like these, it's often better to go through the principal so that you are not held liable of whatever decision is made. However, you could contact that biting student's parents on the issue and set up a meeting with those parents. (Of course, having the principal there would likely help. After all, biting could increase the risk of spreading AIDS and any other diseases.)

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