So, what’s wrong with a long neck?
Gee Ralph. I was only teasing.
|
So, what’s wrong with a long neck? |
|
| TEASING and Kids with Disabilities A lot of time kids tease when they're scared or when they don't understand what's going on or when they're just plain unhappy. Kids (and our friend Ralph, the Giraffe) who feel good about themselves and who work on having a good sense of humor have an easier time than kids who let the teasing get to them. Joking may make the teaser disappear...well, OK, the person may not disappear, but the teasing often 'bites the dust'. What Kids with Disabilities are Saying “I can never be just me…it’s all about the wheelchair. A chair that I have because of the muscular dystrophy, but I am not the wheelchair. And I am definitely not the muscular dystrophy. You’d never believe it, though, because even my friends treat me like I’m perishable. They want to push my wheelchair and carry my books. Some kids I definitely do not like talk to me like I’m four years old instead of ten; you know, baby talk." What Kids with Disabilities are saying "Or how about when people's kids ask, 'Why's he in that wheelchair?' and the parents say, 'Shh... Don't you ever ask questions like that!!!' and drag their kid away like I'm gonna give them some disease or like the kid is in big trouble or something? I hate that!!! I wish that people would ask more questions, instead of acting like I'm some sort of freak." "This kid in school asked me once if I was born in a wheelchair. I told him, 'of course not, you idiot, that would have been much too painful for my mother!'" What Kids with Disabilities are Saying "I have cystic fibrosis, and sometimes I cough a lot. Here's what happens when I get in line at school. the kids in front of me walk real fast, and the kids behind me walk real slow. So it's sort of like I'm all alone." What Kids with Disabilities are Saying "The teacher was probably trying to be nice, but when she saw somebody teasing me, she told the whole class that I had a disease, and that they should be nice to me. I could feel my face get real hot, and I know that I blushed. It was horrible!" TEASING and Kids with Disabilities It's important to remember that teasing says much more about the person who's doing it than it does about the person who's putting up with it. Bill Cosby recommends, and Ralph the Giraffe agrees, repeating the word, "so", in response to teasing. That must drive the teaser crazy after awhile! Because teasing can hurt, it’s easy to get bent out of shape. The trick is to keep your cool, though, since how you react to a tease makes all the difference in the world. In other words, a nasty remark can "take" only if you let it.
 BACK Jackson Center for Independent Living 1981 HOLLYWOOD DRIVE - JACKSON TN 38305 - Phone 731 668-2211 VOICE/TTY |
