Monday, June 20, 2011

Another Time, Another Place, Sir!

Tonight we went out to dinner, and the kids were being bad. They were talking back, questioning and arguing with what we said. We had a long talk on the way home about how they have been awful about doing as they are told and we should hear yes sir or yes ma'am when we tell them to do something.

During the conversation Colin told me about a teacher putting him on time out for saying it, because he thought he was being a smart ass. I guess Daddy knew and forgot, or thought I was there and heard this conversation. It had happened quite a while ago. I never knew about it. I was kind of dumb founded, but I can see how someone who isn't used to hearing it could think the kid was being a smart ass.

Needless to say, I'm sending a note tomorrow letting the teacher know my kids say it out of respect, not disrespect, and though I see how it could of been confused, that was not the case and they need to be aware of how my kids from America were raised.

Funny how you are worried about big things, and it's sometimes the little things that come up.

3 comments:

  1. It amazes me that a grown professional is so unused to politeness and amazing that what is politeness and common for Americans is thought as rudeness in another country.

    ReplyDelete
  2. LOL that is funny. But being from the north I also thought for a long time it was rude to call someone our age maam as it only makes me feel old. I remember in middle school are first year in the south I got in trouble for not saying yes maam to a teacher. I had to explain that we weren't raised that way. I wish it was the same everywhere, either we say it or we don't. That way all the confusion is gone!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yeah, I hated calling people Ma'am, but we were raised up north mostly and then came to the south where it was common. Can't teach an old dog new tricks right? I so said I'd never make my kids say it, until I heard "what" yelled back at me with an attitude when I called Colin's name one day.

    ReplyDelete