Walking out of school...

My 14 y.o daughter walked out of school earlier today. She is in a PRU so there's not many children (around 20 max). 

I had a phone call from school telling me she has left school grounds. Her behaviour is deteriorating as well. 

I have figured out the problem but I'm not sure how to help her. She is verbal and told me this herself. ' I don't like Project because there are 5 different teachers teaching us, they are doing things differently and doing different things in it and I have it like 10 times a week.' 

She doesn't like project which I can understand. Teachers are aware of the problem and try everything to get her into the lesson (she keeps walking out or just doesn't go). The past 2 weeks, this particular lesson has affected her other lessons because today for example, her first 2 lessons were fine, then she had Project and didn't go, then had English (one of her favourites) and didn't go since she wanted to go home. She leaves at lunch which was 15 minutes away but she climbed over the gate and left. (Her teacher followed her a bit and stayed a distance away and during school she is never left alone). 

She is very stressed and when I picked her up she was in tears and told me she was sorry for leaving and wanted to stop going to school altogether... 

Anyways... I don't know how to help her since she wants to go to school but doesn't want to do the lesson. But if she doesn't do the lesson her timetable will be messed up so she's even more stressed about that... I keep reassuring her but I don't know how to make school better for her... 

Any help, advice, ideas is very much appreciated. I'm sorry for ranting on. Thanks x

Parents Reply Children
  • My 14 year old is like that glued to my arm when out ,she is really sensory ,sound ,smell ,light ,touch . She says she wants to live in a house in the garden when older . will probably try to get her in a private school ,if we can find a good one, when she is ready.

  • Awesome - my daughter is 22 and has graduated uni - and she still likes to reach for my hand in crowded places.  Smiley

  • Yes, and we are all grateful for that since last year there was no way she would stay in the house or school on a bad day. Even running away, so everything we have done and she hs done as a family to help her(self) has worked really well. 

  • Sounds like she trusts you and can use you as a portable safe-space.  Smiley

  • I have to admit, she used to go to this school before being home schooled but has now gone back obviously. She used to be a lot worse but now has some coping mechanisms but when it gets too much (or when she has Project lesson) she can't process or think properly in my eyes. She is very bright and can do the work and some has been to easy. She does know right and wrong and was very apologetic when I picked up from down the road from the school. 

    I have noticed she is a lot happier in herself (she's had a traumatic past) and she knows I'm there for her and knows I'm always on the end of the phone if she needs me during school.

    Today, I used a different method to calm her down and she went from tears and overload to no tears and being exhausted but happier. I think she also now knows I understand her a lot better which helps her a lot and when we got back home she chilled out in her bedroom and then took the dog out with me. She has improved a lot ever since last year..

  • swearing at the teacher

    That's total overload - and right on the very edge of fight or flight - neither are allowed and are wrong - but she's on the edge of blowing up - when all rules are garbage, there are no rules!

    It sounds like she's bright enough to do the work and clearly knows right and wrong but she doesn't have any coping mechanisms yet.

    Something we worked very hard with our daughter was providing safety nets for all actions - default actions to get to a lower stress mode - worst case scenario would be "call me - I will come for you"  to take her to safety - and knowing that, she was prepared to push herself into as much anxiety as she could manage - we made sure there was a defrag period when she got home to untangle her brain in the evening.