Teacher Puts Special Needs Child in Box

[DiamondSmiles]

Here, we have another creature who should not be around children in any circumstances!


Patrick Healy, NBCLosAngeles.com

LOS ANGELES -- The mother of a fourth-grade special needs student has filed a claim for damages after her son was made to spend quiet time in a classroom cabinet and, later, in a cardboard box brought in for that purpose.

Whether it was improper for a teacher to have a special needs student spend quiet time in a classroom cardboard box has not been determined by the Lake Elsinore Unified School District.

There are circumstances when such a technique may be permissible, according to a district spokesman.

"A special needs child put in a box is just — I cannot comprehend that," said Kim Rollins, whose son is diagnosed with Asperger's, a syndrome on the mild end of the autistic spectrum.

Sage Rollins, 10, attends class with mainstream students at Ronald Reagan Elementary School in the southwest Riverside County community of Wildomar.

Compartmentalizing a student in the classroom may be an appropriate way to help a child susceptible to sensory overload, said Mark Dennis, spokesman for the Elsinore school district.

"It's called a sensory diet, and there are many varieties of adaptations to create a calm environment. A box can be used. A desk with a blanket. A tent. These can all be used inside a classroom," Dennis said, adding that at least one teacher supply catalogue carries a product called the B-Calm Hideaway, a small box-like play area.

Sage's mother said she first became aware of the box when her son spoke up about taking some scissors to school to cut a hole in it.

Rollins said she learned from her son that his teacher had designated the classroom closet for his quiet time before bringing the box to the classroom. Rollins said her son told her sometimes he went to the box on his own but that twice she ordered him there.

"I would never justify that," said psychologist Ron Leaf, PhD, a founding director of the Autism Project, which provides consulting services to school districts.

Even though some children with Asperger's crave quiet time, Leaf said there are better solutions than relegating them to a box and exposing them to ridicule from fellow students.

An investigation by the Riverside Sheriff's Department found no evidence of a crime. The teacher remains on paid leave pending the outcome of the district's investigation.

After learning of the box, Rollins said she removed her son from Reagan Elementary for a few days. But he has since returned to class, with a new teacher.

[xstunt1ngx]

Bitch should get fired and sent to prison for child negligence. Imagine how the kid felt.

[SeaGrave]

..a box? Really? Do they not have a study room or something?

[Dynamo47]

What a sick bitch. All children need love and affection; even more so for a special needs child!

[DiamondSmiles]

And the teacher in on paid leave! "There are circumstances when such a technique may be permissable", according to a district spokesperson. What might that be?

I think the children should all gang up with no scissors and tape her in a box with heavy duty sealing tape!

[mpcronin]

At least she didn't throw scorpions in with him and say "boo" for each one. "Into the boo-box with you", lol.

[collaredgirl65]

[Eaton]

Originally Posted by diamondsmiles

... at least one teacher supply catalogue carries a product called the B-Calm Hideaway, a small box-like play area.

My wife has one of those.

I love it.

[candymosh]

my child's school has a room they can take the kids to if they have sensory overload. They can dim the lighting, put music on, they have weighted vests....if all that fails, they let the kids calm down on their own and keep an eye on them so they don't hurt themselves.

If any of them ever put my kid in a box, I'd smack a bitch

[Steve]

Strange form of teaching.