Drop the Student ... Keep the Student

I feel like I need to be scraped off the ceiling... or maybe I need just a very strong cocktail.

I just finished teaching my "challenge student"... the one that I keep saying I want to drop but his parents keep pleading that I have a bit more patience for their ultra - perfectionist (but really a sweet heart) of a kid.

I told the mom that I would love to coach her child but he has to learn how to listen and calm himself down for the moment he gets a note wrong he has a total meltdown. He becomes unteachable. I don't have a single student that self-deprecates like he does and is unwilling to accept mistakes. He is only 10 right now. I told the mom that if her son can't get a handle on controlling himself and always needs others to clean up for him, she is doing him no justice.

After teaching him, I am flattened. My friends commented that they feel depressed after hearing about my lesson. He's been high strung these past several weeks and I hate to begin my weekend freedom after a cadence of this child.

It happens... difficult people... difficult situations... I don't know how to reason and reach to the child and I know it is not personal... The mother was very sweet and apologetic as well as very embarrassed that I had to witness her child have one of his "moods."

So I didn't "fire" him as I planned but the parents really saw a display of behavior that was quite a piece of work. He is given permission to be unruly and irresponsible. So I fired his parents instead...

I told her that if her son really wants me to coach him; he'll have to make the appointments and call me himself to tell me his schedule. I don't know the stresses of his life and the only thing I can offer as a chance is that I'd like her son to take responsibility for owning his time with me. Will he call? I don't know. I don't think 10 years old is too young to begin learning to make a stand ...that if you value something that you actually make it happen and become the kind of person that can make things happen... You can't demand parents to make everything happen and then be irresponsible with privileges.

We shall see.....

JNET