PLN 8

Do you remember when you were little? Everyone was always telling us not to run with scissors, run down hills, jump on the bed, or sniff sharpies or expo markers. Most of us didn't understand why, but a lot of us did it anyways. (Heck, I will admit even I sniffed a sharpie or two simply because I wanted to know why I wasn't supposed to). When we were little kids, we often did things simply because we were told not to. The Denver Post published one article called Boy, 8, suspended after sniffing Sharpie marker about one 8 year-old boy named Eathan Harris who was suspended for sniffing a sharpie marker and a shirt which he had drawn a sharpie line on.

This article matters to the world simply because of the ridiculousness of it all. Yes children, I have noticed, are becoming more and more violent towards peers and teachers, and drug use in schools is a growing epidemic. However, assuming that an 8 year-old boy is huffing sharpie fumes to get high is absolutely bizarre. At Eathan's age, most boys don't even know what huffing is.

I think it is important to take initiative when a child acts out. And yes, children who hurt themselves need to be stopped, but suspending a boy because he was being, well, a boy is almost comical. It certainly makes schools look foolish. Schools need to watch their students, so I don't blame them for being concerned. Also, as an aunt, I can't honestly say that sharpies are what kids should be sticking into their noses (I almost prefer fingers.) But if schools are going to act out so severely merely because a boy was curious as to why he was being told no, then schools need to take a look at what really makes a druggie. If Eathan had been continuing this pattern, I can understand stepping in, but immediately assuming Eathan was doing this to hurt himself can make other children scared to even use sharpies, and gives kids a bad view of curiosity.

This article matters to me because I have a niece who is curious about everything. At her age, reverse-phsycology often turns into retrieving a ball from her mouth, or a sticker from her ear. Someday, she will be Eathan's age. I will have to make her cough up paper she swallowed, pens will be confiscated, jelly beans removed from all sorts of places, comb out hair after she ties it in an eternity knot, and sharpie fumes will be discovered snaking their way into her system. I will freak out when these things happen, but am I honestly going to spank her, or put her in time out because she wanted to know what was so bad about something? Probably not. I can remember doing the same exact thing Eathan did. I wasn't trying to get high, nor was I trying to potentially hurt myself. I simply wanted to know why everyone kept telling me not to sniff the markers.

Curiosity can be dangerous for little kids. Yes, I will not deny it, Eathan could have caused himself harm had he not had his marker confiscated ( I am assuming they did confiscate it before sending Eathan home..) but we all did it. I can't think of a single person I know who hasn't tried something potentially dangerous. I suppose I can understand the concern the school administrator who had Eathan suspended felt when Eathan continued to sniff the marker, but simply taking away the marker and explaining why it was bad would suffice. Shockingly, kids Eathan's age do understand when you sit down and explain it to them.

Perhaps Eathan's school's decision to suspend him was correct, but I can't honestly see how, if Eathan had tried to hurt himself, sending him home (where there are doubtless more sharpies) could possibly help. What do you, my readers think?