With school just around the corner, parents of small children are preparing their kids to feel comfortable and adjust to spending long days in the classroom. Often, one of the main things that young children worry about is the ability to use the bathroom during the day. Teachers who say no to children using the bathroom have always been a huge pet peeve of mine. I can’t understand why a teacher would deny a child going to the bathroom; it’s not only a normal body function, dare I say it’s a personal right?
There are so many reasons why children should be allowed to use the bathroom at school when they need to, and the top reason is health. Kids’ bladders are not as mature as adults and it’s common sense that they will need to use the bathroom more often.
Furthermore, having a child hold his urine can be damaging. It can cause the child’s bladder to overfill and leak urine, which only makes things worse. Once this happens, children can develop urinary tract infections, which in turn, can lead to an irritable or overactive bladder.
What astounds me is when teachers say they don’t want the child to lose instruction time, but how can kids learn when they are worrying about having an accident? Even worse are the social and mental ramifications of having an accident in the classroom. How many adults are denied using the bathroom at work? What always bothers me is when children are denied personal rights simply because they are young.
One anonymous mom related a story about how her 7-year-old son was denied using the bathroom after already using the restroom twice. He then had an accident and the teacher made him sit the rest of the day in soiled pants. The teacher didn’t call the mom to bring another set of clothes.
I have taught in different classrooms before and I never viewed a bathroom break as a disruption.
A child will not miss much in the three minutes it takes to relieve himself. Part of being a good teacher and educator is being sensitive to a child’s needs.
Some children are so shy, and can barely raise their hand to ask a teacher to use the bathroom.
When a teacher denies them, or says they don’t allow it from the beginning, it can produce a great amount of stress in these students. I have known quite a few children through friends of my own kids who have been unnecessarily stressed out over using the bathroom in school. If a child feels uncomfortable at school, how can he thrive?
Have rules, yes, and maintain order, for sure, but teachers, please allow your students to enjoy the mental and physical contentment they deserve.
Danielle Sullivan, a mom of three, has worked as a writer and editor in the parenting world for more than 10 years. Sullivan also writes about pets and parenting for Disney’s Babble.com. Find Sullivan on her blogs, Just Write Mom and Some Puppy To Love.
