My children and I just moved back to my hometown after being away for 14 years. My ex-husband, who was emotionally abusive to me and cheated on me with his current wife, has lived here since I moved away. He and his wife have twins who are the same age as my daughter. Our children attend the same school, but I have made certain that they will not be in the same classroom since my ex-husband’s wife has encouraged her twins to pick on my daughter.
After only six days of school, my daughter has come home daily with bruises on her legs. She told me that kids are kicking and pinching her at recess. She does not know their names, so I went to the teacher to discuss the situation. I did not get a satisfactory response from her teacher, so I spoke to the other kindergarten teacher. She said that she has been reporting it, but no one has actually seen the behavior take place.
I want the teachers and recess monitors to watch my daughter more closely at recess according to the school’s anti-bullying rules, but they are not very responsive. This makes me wonder just how seriously my daughter has to be hurt before they intervene.
My daughter is considered to be high-functioning autistic. I want her to love school and fear she will come to hate it if she continues to be bullied. How should I handle this? How do I keep it from continuing – or worse – escalating? Who do I talk to next?
