Ethan came off the bus with his hand wrapped in guaze. He must have tugged & pulled, attempting to get it off. The tight wrapping was causing redness & swelling as it was restricting blood flow. Christina asked the bus attendants if they knew why Ethan's hand was wound with guaze. They didn't.

It took a bit of work, but she removed the dressing. She found a small area that was irritated and bleeding a bit. Since Ethan can't tell her what goes on at school, she retrieved the notebook. It stated that Ethan had been picking at his hand until it bled. A bandage was applied, but he pulled it off. Guaze wrapping was then secured around it.

Picking at himself is not behavior typical to Ethan. Christina looked more closely at his hand. She noticed a protrusion. It was a tiny piece of glass or hard plastic. She pulled it out and Ethan was fine. He had merely been trying to remove a painful fragment from his skin which was the real cause of his bleeding.

I can't help but wonder what other situations does the teacher write off as odd behavior or "just Ethan" when he has a legitmate need but is unable to communicate. He doesn't eat his lunch is it assumed he isn't hungry when actually he wasn't able to pick up his burrito and bite into it. He needs it cut in pieces that he can manage with a fork. Or what about the teacher assuming he refuses to participate in the songs and finger plays, when he just can't get the hand movements on his own? He isn't capable of singing or the hand movments.

I could go on about incidents that have happened in the short time Ethan's been in kindergarten. Starting school should be a positive experience to encourage lifelong learning. Ethan has not have a positive start. This gramma is very sad.