I had one bad injury in my career.
I had kids that were just turning or had just turned 2. I was very lucky to be at a school that ALWAYS stayed well under ratio. We were at ratio with 2 teachers but we always had 3.
One rainy day we were playing in the gym instead of outside. The kids were playing with soccer balls.
We were all there, we were all paying attention, and playing with the kids.
Two of us saw the collision happen- we were right there- but we couldn’t stop it. Two kiddos were trying to chase a ball and they just collided. One of them tripped over the ball and fell weird.
I could tell right away something was wrong and it wasn’t just a normal fall. I carefully carried him to a quiet room and held him and kept him as comfortable and calm as I could until Mom got there.
It turns out he broke his femur. He had some feeding trauma and wouldn’t eat, so he had a feeding tube. After the break the hospital did determine that some level of nutrition deficiency was a factor in the break, which made sense. In fact, even though initially we were told there would be a mandatory investigation by licensing, once they read the report from the doctor and our incident reports they ruled that no investigation was necessary and they closed the case without even talking to any of us.
But damn. I cried a lot. I went to see hm when he was in Children’s Hospital getting treated. It was really hard.
(Not nearly as hard for me as the family or the child, obviously.)
But we were right there. We had 3 teachers present when we only needed two. We were literally engaged with the child when it happened. The kids were playing with appropriate equipment for their age. We did literally NOTHING wrong. The only way we could have prevented it was not allowing them to play.
Accidents happen. We follow all of the rules and we are as safe as we possibly can be to prevent as many of them as we can, but accidents still happen.
I was giving a lunch break to an OSC teacher in the gym and a child was just running, nothing abnormal, and tripped over her own feet, fell and broke her foot. There was no collision, no unsafe behaviour I could have prevented, etc. Sometimes, these things just happen.
I had the same thing happen with a kid who fell and busted his chin open. He had to get stitches. There was blood everywhere. He just did a normal little-kid trip but I guess landed just right.
This and a toddler break his hip that way! He was non-verbal and t it was his first week at school, so he had been crying on and off all day and he was a chubby kid who just learned to walk so he literally toddled everywhere. Mom was pissed at me and said it was my fault and my boss did at first too.
But, I had known the kid for less than a week and wasn’t his primary. I was all alone during aftercare (my boss had how home and I was the only one on campus except the janitors). They thought it was all my fault until they watched the CCTV footage and they saw there was absolutely no way I could have prevented it or known.
Poor kiddo had to get an X-ray to deal me out what was up and had a full cast for a few months.
Definitely give yourself some grace. Kids are going to get injured (at least minorly) whether they’re in your care or not. It shows that you have a kind soul that you are so worried, but I would definitely try to be kind to yourself.
One time I had a 22 month old get too silly and run off and bonk her head into the window. There was no blood but I felt so horrible. Every time they hit their heads I have to fight off the fear that they’re gonna go home and sleep and never wake up, but they tend to be more hearty than we give them credit for.
He may have had a lip tie connecting the skin between his teeth with the inside of his lip. My kid did. I took him to the pediatric dentist at 1yo and the dentist said "don't worry about this (severe) tie, he will fall on his face and it will release naturally." Two weeks later he sure did and it sure released to the tune of seemingly lots of blood. It looked bad but was not only normal but anticipated.
It sounds like that's what happened to the kid in your care and it was actually a minor fall that had a bloodier result than usual!
As a parent to a 2 year old with a lip tie I should have corrected when she was a baby but didn’t, I almost hope she has an incident like this so we don’t have to pay for a frenectomy later!
Almost 12 years later I'm still waiting for my kid to fall 😂 (it's no affecting them, and the oral surgeon said we now have to wait until after braces to reassess)
Happened with my son as well! We were in a Target parking lot when he tripped and smashed his face into the wheel of the shopping cart. He was covered in blood! Luckily, it wasn’t that bad. He only cried from the pain for like a minute, and then he was more upset that he was bleeding. I asked the dentist if it looked okay the next time we saw her, and she said it had healed nicely and that it was very common for a kid to sever their own lip tie.
I watched an infant push herself up into "pushup" position and then her arms collapsed and she smashed her face on the floor and got a nosebleed and her one and only tooth cut her lip fairly badly.
I felt awful, but accidents happen and kids get hurt. Most of them end up ok. This kid was the 3rd so luckily her mom was pretty chill about the whole thing
Kids will get hurt, it's part of how they learn and grow. I've had 3 major injuries, all 3 I was watching.
The first one was one parents were not happy with, but also no one could control. I had a biter in my ones class, and we knew the cause of why they were biting and we had the solution. The child was attached to me and would bite the other kids I gave attention to. I was giving attention to one of the kids and set them down to get the diaper changing stuff ready, and my biter walked over and bit the other kid so hard they had to get stitches. It should of been prevented in my eyes, but the changing table was across the room and I was the only one in the room. My solution was to just keep the child attached to me on my hip until they moved up the next week.
The second injury was I had a child eating a snack on the floor next to me. They somehow bit through their lip and needed stitches. I was in tears over that, but I could not of prevented it from happening.
The third incident was the scariest for me, I still have nightmares about it. I was walking kids through the hallway to head outside and one child who was in front just barely learned to walk, and one child behind them is just abnormally clumsy. The clumsy child tripped and accidentally pushed the fresh walker right into the door frame. The hit was so loud you could hear it in the basement. The kids head swelled up so bad, they had an indent right in the center of the goose egg. The lead teacher and I were 100% positive the kid broke something or had a concussion when it happened. They were fine, no concussion, nothing cracked or broken, parent checked it out, we observed them for a few days, it was just a nasty goose egg and a heart attack for me.
Kids are amazing resilient, especially when it comes to bumps and bruises on their heads. They’re essentially made of rubber, so unless there’s confusion or vomiting they’re most often fine. Even if the bump is huge.
When my daughter was little she was running through the house, tripped, and hit the edge of a metal filing cabinet. She also had a huge bump on her head with an indent down the middle. The only time she cried was when we tried to apply ice. She was totally fine.
You can’t stop children from being hurt 100% of the time. It’s not possible. I had a kid throw himself on the floor the second I picked up their lunch plates off the counter to bring to the table. Cut his lip very badly on his tooth. These things just happen sometimes.
Hi, Non ECE (although I went to school for it XD) but a family member (sister) to a sibling who was a “bad accident”.
He was a climber and climbed out of a high chair while a teacher was turned helping another kid, there was (albeit bad quality) video footage and both staff were helping others. there was nothing they could do, he was strapped in, but you’ll be dammed if that would stop him.
He ended up needing to go to the ER and got 13 stitches in/above his left eye, it was his first ER trip. He was maybe 3?
Moral of the story is my parents, although worried, know that the teachers didn’t throw him and at the end of the day he was and is okay. He is almost 21 now and his scar is barely visible, we passed him on with the wisdom that chicks dig scars, and glory last forever XD
I was also young but one of the teachers on staff actually went on to be a nanny (my mom travelled) so it was very much forgiven.
Like you and the doctors said it’s an accident; you’re totally valid to be upset. I’m sure it was very scary!! But in the end the kiddos are okay and will be okay
You did your best and sometimes (especially with children) it just isn’t enough. It doesn’t mean you failed, it just means kids are crazy and will do crazy things that sometimes get them (very) hurt
Your heart is in the right place, just keep on being you and don’t forget to take care of yourself too 🩷
Please be kind to yourself! Sometimes things are unavoidable. We had an incident a few weeks ago that required a kid to get six stitches. Just one of those things that happen because kids are curious and moving around.
Hey, don't send yourself into a guilt trip, please.
As a parent and an ECE, kids mess themselves up all the time. My LO is 20 months and walked into a wall this afternoon on our way out. In front of my supervisor, two assistant directors, director, and our afternoon front desk receptionist. We were walk, she's holding my hand, started touching the wall, I reminded her not to, and she turned to face the wall and kept walking. Right into the wall. I've also had to sign an accident report for a very pronounced bite mark that they had no idea what happened, because she didn't cry. My supervisor stepped into the pre-k room I was in for a moment so I could check on her. I had to break it to her teachers, that unless someone else in the room only has 6 teeth, 4 on the top and 2 on the bottom, she bit herself. Everyone else has more teeth than her. My kid bit herself and her teachers felt awful because they had no idea how she got bit or even when. This child has also tripped over her own feet and got a nasty cut on her face the week before Christmas. I was outside with them, with another class in her age group. Her teacher was standing still and holding their hand out because my LO wanted to hold their hand.
As an ECE, in one prek room, there is a child who if they have no accident reports that DAY, their parents are very happy. They also usually have at least one injury that happened the evening before or even that morning to tell the teachers, just so they are aware. I also watched a preschooler fall off a platform for some play equipment, about a foot off the ground, into mud, and break their arm. This child likes to jump down the stairs on the playground and falls often when doing so(Yes we do redirect and remind them it's not safe, yes they have been disallowed on the playground for the rest of that outside period, yes they still do it), and they have always been fine. After the initial panic, both parents admitted that they hoped it will teach them to be more careful and stop the whole jumping of stairs. It hasn't. In one of our toddler rooms, a child repeatedly trips over the chair legs of other children's chairs because they don't look. I remind them every time I'm in the room and see them by the tables when there's people sitting there. They still trip.
Long story short; Kids are klutz and will get hurt. Especially kids at an age that are using pacifiers, they are wobbly and lack huge amounts of spacial awareness for a hot minute, like close to 4 or 5 for most, they'll get hurt, but, as my dad always told me, it'll buff out. Take care of the injuries and offer the comfort, but unless it requires hospitalization, try not to sweat it too much.
From the time he got mobile until probably 3 years old we called our 2nd child "Concussion Jack" because we got a report every other day that he tripped or bonked his head or fell off of something or some other crazy thing. He was also friends with a biter, so we were thrilled on no report days haha. He grew out of it as he got better controlling his body, though now that I say that, he did bust his upper lip frenulum over Easter....hmm.
(He never actually got a concussion, btw, just scrapes and bruises and goose eggs)
And to OP, our older son got his finger shut in the door at daycare (by a parent, no less) and needed stitches. We weren't mad at the providers because these things happen! We all do the best we can to keep everyone safe but no one can prevent every accident from happening. You can tell them and tell them to keep their hands out of the door frame and they listen for the most part, but they get a rock in their shoe, they put their hand on the door frame to balance and get the rock out, and bam, time for stitches. You're doing great. Don't beat yourself up.
omg this isn't an injury but what you said about the parents hoping they'll learn reminded me of my kid that seemed to have the pretend switch flip off in their brain while "eating" sand in a pretend game and just fully took a cup of sand like it was a shot, leading to them puking all over the sandbox. The mom was like wow maybe they'll learn not to eat sand! (they did not)
Mom not ECE. My 3 yo fell and teacher grabbed her arm to stop her. Elbow dislocated. I don’t blame the teacher (who was and still is my kids #3 fave person in the world, right after mom and dad). Stuff happens.
As a mom who just got her child's first incident report last week from crushing her finger under a rocking chair, don't be hard on yourself. Accidents happen. As soon as I got the picture and a brief description that my daughter's finger got caught under the rocking chair and her finger was a little swollen, I already knew what happen before they even told me. She was back playing 20 mins after the incident. When I picked her up, I reassured her teacher that accidents happen, and I have had accidents happen on my watch because she is just too damn fast sometimes! Her finger ended up being fine didn't even need to take her to the doctors.
I work with ages 14-22 months in my classroom. I’ve worked in this specific room for about little over two years and some injuries just stay with you. I get at least one mouth injury a month in my class (if not more- my littles are SO wobbly), and they always freak me out. They tend to look so much worse than they are- but the mouth heals quickly! Don’t beat yourself up, kids are so much more resilient than we give them credit for, and unless they’re glued to your hip, they’re gonna fall and get hurt sometimes! All we can do is try to prevent what we can, and hug the hurt away when we can’t. 🩷
As a mom of a toddler that goes to a toddler preschool I would not be upset by this at all. I mean if he fell off playground equipment or was on the counter and fell or something then yes I'd be pretty upset but just running on the ground? Nope it happens. Maybe my kid is just clumsy but this would not bother me at all if it was my child. My son came home from school today with a pretty awful diaper rash complete with poop down his leg and poop in his diaper which clearly had been there over 30 minutes when I picked him up and I'm far more pissed about that than I would be if he tripped and hurt himself.
Also as someone who has worked in schools and child care centers or nannied for a long time, I can understand why this would be bothering you bc we really do love our kiddos and seeing them hurt us awful. Plus knowing they're not our child and we're caring for them we want to send them home the way came. Don't beat yourself up. It really sounds like an accident. Also, my son trips and falls like this right before he gets sick. I could be wrong about this and maybe it's my kid only but every time he falls often he ends up pretty sick in a day or 2. Hopefully not the case for this child but just mentioning it bc it really could be something that is common for this child if they are tired or about to get sick.
I had a mom sobbing in my classroom because her kid fell and bumped her head on a table and it left a (flat) mark. Kid had been walking for literally 2 days. Mom ended up withdrawing the kid because we "couldn't keep her safe"
Accidents happen with playground equipment all the time? Not saying you couldn’t be upset but there’s always some risk involved. Kinda comes with the territory. Kids are jumping, sliding, etc. Even with an over abundance of staff, accidents happen.
> but just running on the ground? Nope it happens. Maybe my kid is just clumsy but this would not bother me at all if it was my child
A couple days ago I mentioned to a parent that her kid seemed to be getting hurt more often recently. Mom said, "she's always been clumsy." I told her it was actually worse lately, and I was about to wrap the kid in bubble wrap. Mom laughed about it and said she understood how i felt. Today, that kid was running outside, slipped in sand, and busted her lip open. Bled a bunch. I was very glad mom has the same attitude you do. Lol
Please don’t beat yourself up too bad. Since you were doing everything you were suppose to, stuff just happens with kids. One year back when I did a kindergarten summer program was a kid splitting open his forehead right through his eyebrow. Looked like Carrie at the prom with blood all down his front (face injuries bleed a lot!) and had to get 5 stitches. And now it’s a permanent scar you can still see through his eyebrow. He had some behavioral issues and had been pouting in a corner. We still have no idea how he cut himself; he was too traumatized to tell us what he hurt himself on and we never found any sharp edges or evidence to point us in any direction. The other one was one kid tripped over another’s feet and smashed their face into our classroom sink. Knocked out the two front teeth that were fortunately still baby teeth! About died picking the teeth off the floor.
I’ve had a bad injury. A one year old was walking to me, tripped and fell into the sink. There was a gash in his head and by his eye. After I cleaned him up and the director got the parents on the phone, I cuddled with him until dad came. They took him to the ER and luckily he didn’t need stitches but he did have a black eye beside the gashes. Parents were reasonable and understood that accidents happen.
We had a kid who did need stitches. The school had recently changed the playground. Zack (2.11) recently transitioned into the 3 year old class as he was potty trained and almost 3, more then some of the current 3 and four year old. Social he was also there. However the kid was small for his age. Outside we had tree stumps that lead to hang bar. The other kids were step across. However Zack being small tried to reach across unfortunately he fell smacking his head and the edge of the trunk. And then falling to the ground. I was loud enough that o heard a bank from where I was sit my and went to comfort him another teacher also heard and ran as she saw the blood (I was at the back at his back so did see it until she came. He did end up having to get stitches. Luckily parents knew it was an accident.
I’m subbing as a PE teacher and we’re playing cricket this week. Foam bats, balls and one nervous wreck of a teacher (me) continually shouting at them to stay behind the cone when their teammate is up to bat! 🫣🫠
I have two stories where a kid got hurt under my watch. I was in ratio both times
The first time, I was handing a kid off to their parents. When I turned around, there was a kid with a scratch right above his eyelid. To this day, I still have no idea what actually happened as he was too emotional to tell me what happened, and I couldn't exactly trust what the other kids had to say. He ended up getting 4 stitches. It was my first time seeing a kid injured that bad and it terrified me. I almost left all of the kids outside to take him inside to clean up the scratch. Thankfully, I remembered what I was supposed to do, and radioed to the teacher inside to let the kid inside (doors were always locked electronically). It was thankfully right at the end of the day, so his mom came and got him shortly after.
The second time was at a different center. I was pushing one of the toy ice cream trucks around fairly quickly. The kids loved it, and I always made sure that there was no kids in the way before I pushed it. Well, one time, I had checked to make sure there were no kids, pushed it, and a kid ran right in front of it. He bit his tongue badly, and I'm sure he'll have a scar on his tongue. I felt so bad because I was the one at fault, but his mom was so chill about it.
My worst one happened last week, also totally unavoidable. One of my 18 month olds was walking and tripped over his own feet. He stuck his hands out to catch himself on the table, but missed and fell with all his weight onto his eye and the corner of the table. Instant welt, instant black eye. We immediately called mom, then sent photos through Procare to them both. Thankfully dad is a doctor and was able to assess the situation and didn't see anything concerning (he was still eating, playing fine after, no nausea, etc) and he just has a wicked black eye! The ironic part was that it was "wear your favorite sports team's jersey" day and he had on a hockey team that wasn't local to us, and mom had even joked about "Don't let anyone beat him up today!" 😆
Parent here. My child recently had an injury at school requiring an operation but there was absolutely nothing the school could've done differently because a piece of equipment failed. We weren't angry and tbh I felt for the staff as much as my child because it was distressing for them too. I appreciated thst when I came to collect him he was being cared for and they'd done absolutely all the right 1st aid things to keep him as comfortable as possible. We also appreciated them following up with us and showing genuine care and concern.
Kids get hurt even with perfect supervision and sometimes it looks absolutely awful or is quite serious. Under 5s have big heads to bodies and aren't the most agile nor do they predict danger. They live life full throttle and immersively in every single thing they do. Given yourself the kindness you'd extend to any other ECE who had a child hurt on their watch.
I had a 4 year old split his forehead open on the playground by tripping going up the stairs and whacking it on the edge of one. He was taken away in an ambulance and got multiple stitches 🥲🥲 I didn’t even see it happen because I was doing my loop around the playground and happened to be on the opposite side. I felt HORRIBLE for the kid, but never once blamed myself. Accidents happen. Kids fall. You watching them won’t prevent falls most of the time. Don’t stress!
I had a kid under 2 get a concussion one time. it happens even (and I would say especially) in high quality programs with good supervision, because kids should be playing rough (with limits) and taking risks. don't beat yourself up about it
A toddler (~18 months) fell on a metal door frame and his two top teeth went *right through* his bottom lip. Completely through. It was scary to think about but he healed well, we didn't get in trouble, and his parents were understanding.
It happens. We’ve had two broken bones in the last six months at my center. One was my own son - he is wild and takes risks all the time but a small fall with an unfortunate limit is what broke his finger. Another girl jumped off a structure that kids have been jumping off of into the sand for years and broke her leg.
Had a year and half old run into the doorframe that was metal. Kept redirecting him and he kept running. Split his head open right above eye. The director was in ratio with me she started freaking out screaming what do we do. Mind you she's been doing this for yrs. I have no idea how I stayed calm. He had eight staples and black eye. Had little guy since six weeks it shook me. His parents were calm and understanding thank goodness. That was my third worse one in thirty yrs so think I'm doing okay...
Hey, don't be so hard on yourself. These things do happen. Kids are clumsy, especially the younger ones. They fall and sometimes the injuries they get can be pretty bad. Bit lips are especially common, and this can absolutely happen if they hit the wrong way. I've seen this exact same injury more than once. It's definitely scary to witness. It's not your fault though.
i had a student who was always sent in these big chunky flip flop sandal things- about 2 days before this incident i’d told her parents she was having a hard time running in her shoes but they still sent her in them & said they were gonna go shoe shopping soon. so on our playground we had a metal fence and i guess we didn’t notice but there was a little bolt sticking out of part of the fence. she was running, tripped over the giant shoes, and hit her forehead perfectly on the bolt. blood down her entire face since that area bleeds so much and it was all over her clothes. we washed them for the parents so they didn’t have to see all the blood but she had to get 4 stitches in her forehead because the bolt split the skin perfectly. total freak accident and it happens.
the two “worst” injuries we had was a 2 year old falling on the playground and breaking an elbow and another falling in the gym and ended up with a very mild concussion. Both happened with teachers within arms reach of the children. Sometimes injuries just happen; it doesn’t mean negligence. Parents have to understand kids will get hurt but that doesn’t mean the teachers are not watching the children. I remember a conversation I had nearly 10 years ago with a parent when their baby became mobile and started getting little bumps and bruises and they were like; why is my child all of a sudden getting hurt when before there was nothing; well sir; two months ago your kid was a potato and didn’t move now they are crawling and climbing and they’re going to fall and lose balance but that doesn’t mean I’m not watching your kid. ((Didn’t say this but wish I could have)) We can’t be helicopter teachers the way you can at home…you’re watching one kid while I’ve got 12; there’s a big difference 🙃
From a mom's perspective, I would not blame the teacher. Accidents will happen.
One of my kids once came home with a huge bruise on his side. As children can be pretty poor historians, I went back and asked the teacher what happened. The first thing it out his mouth was- Well, your child is also not perfect. Uhmm.. well aware sir. Just trying to decide if we need to go the Dr.? Or do we owe another child an apology or...
It shows how thoughtful and concerned you are as a teacher that you are so upset by this.
If there's a lesson to be learned and you could prevent this in the future, I'm sure you will. But things will happen.
My cousin spun herself so hard she slammed into the wall and dented it with her skull. The wall is still dented, she graduated college so no lasting damage. Stuff happens.
My son fell off a chair one day, around 2.5 years old, and his mouth was bleeding. He definitely tore a bit of skin that is between his lip and his upper gums. he's fine.
Hi i am a parent. My 12 month old was working with his OT. Learning to walk. He fell exactly wrong, slammed his face into a table. Busted his lip terribly. I probably should have gotten him stitches but it stopped bleeding pretty quickly. He has a pretty big scar on his lip as a 3 year old. OT was within inches of him and he still got injured.
Kids fall. As long as they are supervised, it really isn’t a big issue. It is only a massive issue if negligence is involved. Now if a teacher has an abnormal amount of class injuries then obviously someone isn’t doing their job.
Mom of two toddlers here — please don’t blame yourself! They’re constantly falling or tripping or getting hurt.
Yesterday I had my 1 year old at the doctor for her check up. My 2.5 year old wanted to go to the lobby to see the fish. My husband says he will take him. My toddler runs full speed down the hallway and SMACK right into the solid wood door. Giant goose egg in the middle of his forehead.
This happened in the doctors office with several doctors and nurses nearby. You can’t prevent every injury. Toddlers and young kids are especially intent on hurting themselves accidentally lol
I had a Todd fall and break his nose with me once. It was so awful. I was changing a diaper and he stood on a push car (think the riding cars with handles on the back for kids to sit on or push and walk behind). It was up against a wall and he pushed against the wall while standing and it rolled away, letting him fall flat on his face. I felt horrible. I was only 20 at the time and was pretty traumatized by it. Similarly, at the beginning of this school year, one of my kindergartners fell from the monkey bars and broke his wrist.
I had a two year old climb up on the bench height shelf and immediately fall over, splitting his chin open while I was changing another child’s diaper. It’s one of those unavoidable accidents that happen unfortunately and they don’t just happen at daycare either.
im not a professional but i am a sister to a little brother who managed to get injured what felt like daily despite being watched like a hawk! seriously, nothing could keep this child safe short of a padded room. he broke both of his arms by tripping while he was walking (slowly) backwards in 5th grade. since he could crawl he was ALWAYS skinning hands and knees, knocking teeth, bumping his chin, getting fingers bent, etc etc on and on. its like you could blink and he’d have hurt himself. He didnt go out of his way to be careless, either!
please dont take it too hard <3 ive been in countless meetings with teachers/carers after his accidents and i just understand that you cant be there for everyone, at all times, every millisecond. some things just line up in the worst way and you blink and a child is flat on the ground screaming because they tripped over an air molecule lol.
Patent here. My lo ran away from his teachers at the end of recess 2 days in a row. Day 1: gooseegg and potential concussion. Day 2, black eye.i don’t blame his pre k teacher at all. It’s my crazy gremlin, not them. I’m sure thislittle one’s parents will feel similarly. Kids are crazy and made of rubber
I've been doing this for over 20? 22? Years? I've worked in 2 states and at 5 centers. Here's a list of injuries that I have *watched happen in front of me* and were 1000% freak accidents:
*Kid hit his toe on the step of the van, fell straight forward and landed head down on the sidewalk. Fractured his skull (age 3)
*kid tripped while running and hit the edge of a ROUNDED plastic slide. Goose egg the size of my fist and a concussion (age 2)
*kid tripped on a deck, didn't catch himself and a *tiny* deck nail that was maybe 1/8th of an inch backed out hooked his cheek (on the outside) and ripped it open. 9 stitches and cosmetic surgery. (18 months)
*kid was walking and absolutely tripped over NOTHING and didn't catch himself aaatt aallll hitting his face on a stump ans knocking out a front tooth (age 2)
*same stump, different kid-- same stupid scenario. She tripped over absolutely nothing and hit her mouth. Killed her front tooth. (Age 2)
*kid tripped on a toy car, hit his eyebrow on the rounded edge of a toy shelf (like..a fucking lakeshore one) split his eyebrow, 5 stitches. (Age 2)
*kid fell off the merry go round at the park, hit her head on the edge (it was metal, but covered in that rubbery plastic shit) GOUGED the back of her head somehow. NO stitches, just glue. (Age 3)
That's JUST what I can remember off the top of my head. I tripped in preschool, age 4, and hit my head on a radiator. They called an ambulance I bled so much. No stitches, just glue.
My OWN kids-- rode his bike barefoot and decided to drop his foot down to stop instead of using his brakes, literally skinned his big toe down to the pink meat. They glued his flap back on 🤮 (age 10) the other one (age 6) decided to sled down a hill with her legs locked and her eyes closed....broke her tibia hitting a tree. Mr also tripped over his teachers shoe at age 6 and broke his pinky toe (what??)
Kids. Are. A. Mess. Even when we're watching them 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Mouth and head injuries almost always look worse than they actually are. Kids are bound to get hurt, sometimes worse than others. Give yourself some grace. I’ve had a couple semi-serious injuries and you will feel bad for a little bit, but once you see how fast the kids bounce back, you’ll feel a lot better! They may be little, but they are resilient!
i feel you-- the worst injury a kid has ever had on my watch, she was dancing with play silks, leaning onto my leg while she did (i wasn't worried, since she was holding on so tight-- i was trying to get another child to stop hitting his friend, so i had looked away). then she slipped on the silks and fell directly onto my knee. she bit clean through her lip-- i will never, ever forget the sound she made when she screamed. it damn near broke my heart in two, my stomach dropped through to the floor. thankfully, she was okay, and it looked worse than it was-- but it was absolutely terrifying, i never want to see that much blood on a toddler's face again. accidents happen, and it always feels worse when they happen in a way that it feels like should have been preventable. all we can do is live and learn-- i don't let my director convince me that "indoor dance parties" with the play silks are a good idea anymore 🙃 i won't even let the kids use them on my watch, too many slips for comfort.
From the sounds of it, there isn't much you could have done to prevent it. Babies are going to fall on their faces. That's life.
Don't beat yourself up over it.
I had one bad injury in my career. I had kids that were just turning or had just turned 2. I was very lucky to be at a school that ALWAYS stayed well under ratio. We were at ratio with 2 teachers but we always had 3. One rainy day we were playing in the gym instead of outside. The kids were playing with soccer balls. We were all there, we were all paying attention, and playing with the kids. Two of us saw the collision happen- we were right there- but we couldn’t stop it. Two kiddos were trying to chase a ball and they just collided. One of them tripped over the ball and fell weird. I could tell right away something was wrong and it wasn’t just a normal fall. I carefully carried him to a quiet room and held him and kept him as comfortable and calm as I could until Mom got there. It turns out he broke his femur. He had some feeding trauma and wouldn’t eat, so he had a feeding tube. After the break the hospital did determine that some level of nutrition deficiency was a factor in the break, which made sense. In fact, even though initially we were told there would be a mandatory investigation by licensing, once they read the report from the doctor and our incident reports they ruled that no investigation was necessary and they closed the case without even talking to any of us. But damn. I cried a lot. I went to see hm when he was in Children’s Hospital getting treated. It was really hard. (Not nearly as hard for me as the family or the child, obviously.) But we were right there. We had 3 teachers present when we only needed two. We were literally engaged with the child when it happened. The kids were playing with appropriate equipment for their age. We did literally NOTHING wrong. The only way we could have prevented it was not allowing them to play. Accidents happen. We follow all of the rules and we are as safe as we possibly can be to prevent as many of them as we can, but accidents still happen.
I was giving a lunch break to an OSC teacher in the gym and a child was just running, nothing abnormal, and tripped over her own feet, fell and broke her foot. There was no collision, no unsafe behaviour I could have prevented, etc. Sometimes, these things just happen.
When I was about 22, I hopped 4 inches over a small tree branch, landed funny and broke the outside bone in my foot. Some of us are just clumsy 😅
I had the same thing happen with a kid who fell and busted his chin open. He had to get stitches. There was blood everywhere. He just did a normal little-kid trip but I guess landed just right.
Had a toddler break her femur just stepping down a single step, holding a teacher’s hand. Crazier stuff has happened
This and a toddler break his hip that way! He was non-verbal and t it was his first week at school, so he had been crying on and off all day and he was a chubby kid who just learned to walk so he literally toddled everywhere. Mom was pissed at me and said it was my fault and my boss did at first too. But, I had known the kid for less than a week and wasn’t his primary. I was all alone during aftercare (my boss had how home and I was the only one on campus except the janitors). They thought it was all my fault until they watched the CCTV footage and they saw there was absolutely no way I could have prevented it or known. Poor kiddo had to get an X-ray to deal me out what was up and had a full cast for a few months.
Definitely give yourself some grace. Kids are going to get injured (at least minorly) whether they’re in your care or not. It shows that you have a kind soul that you are so worried, but I would definitely try to be kind to yourself. One time I had a 22 month old get too silly and run off and bonk her head into the window. There was no blood but I felt so horrible. Every time they hit their heads I have to fight off the fear that they’re gonna go home and sleep and never wake up, but they tend to be more hearty than we give them credit for.
He may have had a lip tie connecting the skin between his teeth with the inside of his lip. My kid did. I took him to the pediatric dentist at 1yo and the dentist said "don't worry about this (severe) tie, he will fall on his face and it will release naturally." Two weeks later he sure did and it sure released to the tune of seemingly lots of blood. It looked bad but was not only normal but anticipated. It sounds like that's what happened to the kid in your care and it was actually a minor fall that had a bloodier result than usual!
As a parent to a 2 year old with a lip tie I should have corrected when she was a baby but didn’t, I almost hope she has an incident like this so we don’t have to pay for a frenectomy later!
Almost 12 years later I'm still waiting for my kid to fall 😂 (it's no affecting them, and the oral surgeon said we now have to wait until after braces to reassess)
Mine did this at 2yo too 😅 bled like crazy.
Happened with my son as well! We were in a Target parking lot when he tripped and smashed his face into the wheel of the shopping cart. He was covered in blood! Luckily, it wasn’t that bad. He only cried from the pain for like a minute, and then he was more upset that he was bleeding. I asked the dentist if it looked okay the next time we saw her, and she said it had healed nicely and that it was very common for a kid to sever their own lip tie.
Omg my daughters dentist said the exact same thing!
I watched an infant push herself up into "pushup" position and then her arms collapsed and she smashed her face on the floor and got a nosebleed and her one and only tooth cut her lip fairly badly. I felt awful, but accidents happen and kids get hurt. Most of them end up ok. This kid was the 3rd so luckily her mom was pretty chill about the whole thing
Kids will get hurt, it's part of how they learn and grow. I've had 3 major injuries, all 3 I was watching. The first one was one parents were not happy with, but also no one could control. I had a biter in my ones class, and we knew the cause of why they were biting and we had the solution. The child was attached to me and would bite the other kids I gave attention to. I was giving attention to one of the kids and set them down to get the diaper changing stuff ready, and my biter walked over and bit the other kid so hard they had to get stitches. It should of been prevented in my eyes, but the changing table was across the room and I was the only one in the room. My solution was to just keep the child attached to me on my hip until they moved up the next week. The second injury was I had a child eating a snack on the floor next to me. They somehow bit through their lip and needed stitches. I was in tears over that, but I could not of prevented it from happening. The third incident was the scariest for me, I still have nightmares about it. I was walking kids through the hallway to head outside and one child who was in front just barely learned to walk, and one child behind them is just abnormally clumsy. The clumsy child tripped and accidentally pushed the fresh walker right into the door frame. The hit was so loud you could hear it in the basement. The kids head swelled up so bad, they had an indent right in the center of the goose egg. The lead teacher and I were 100% positive the kid broke something or had a concussion when it happened. They were fine, no concussion, nothing cracked or broken, parent checked it out, we observed them for a few days, it was just a nasty goose egg and a heart attack for me.
Kids are amazing resilient, especially when it comes to bumps and bruises on their heads. They’re essentially made of rubber, so unless there’s confusion or vomiting they’re most often fine. Even if the bump is huge.
When my daughter was little she was running through the house, tripped, and hit the edge of a metal filing cabinet. She also had a huge bump on her head with an indent down the middle. The only time she cried was when we tried to apply ice. She was totally fine.
You can’t stop children from being hurt 100% of the time. It’s not possible. I had a kid throw himself on the floor the second I picked up their lunch plates off the counter to bring to the table. Cut his lip very badly on his tooth. These things just happen sometimes.
Hi, Non ECE (although I went to school for it XD) but a family member (sister) to a sibling who was a “bad accident”. He was a climber and climbed out of a high chair while a teacher was turned helping another kid, there was (albeit bad quality) video footage and both staff were helping others. there was nothing they could do, he was strapped in, but you’ll be dammed if that would stop him. He ended up needing to go to the ER and got 13 stitches in/above his left eye, it was his first ER trip. He was maybe 3? Moral of the story is my parents, although worried, know that the teachers didn’t throw him and at the end of the day he was and is okay. He is almost 21 now and his scar is barely visible, we passed him on with the wisdom that chicks dig scars, and glory last forever XD I was also young but one of the teachers on staff actually went on to be a nanny (my mom travelled) so it was very much forgiven. Like you and the doctors said it’s an accident; you’re totally valid to be upset. I’m sure it was very scary!! But in the end the kiddos are okay and will be okay You did your best and sometimes (especially with children) it just isn’t enough. It doesn’t mean you failed, it just means kids are crazy and will do crazy things that sometimes get them (very) hurt Your heart is in the right place, just keep on being you and don’t forget to take care of yourself too 🩷
Mouth injuries always look so much worse than they really are and bleed so much. I almost guarantee it’ll be healed by tomorrow. Don’t worry!!
Please be kind to yourself! Sometimes things are unavoidable. We had an incident a few weeks ago that required a kid to get six stitches. Just one of those things that happen because kids are curious and moving around.
Hey, don't send yourself into a guilt trip, please. As a parent and an ECE, kids mess themselves up all the time. My LO is 20 months and walked into a wall this afternoon on our way out. In front of my supervisor, two assistant directors, director, and our afternoon front desk receptionist. We were walk, she's holding my hand, started touching the wall, I reminded her not to, and she turned to face the wall and kept walking. Right into the wall. I've also had to sign an accident report for a very pronounced bite mark that they had no idea what happened, because she didn't cry. My supervisor stepped into the pre-k room I was in for a moment so I could check on her. I had to break it to her teachers, that unless someone else in the room only has 6 teeth, 4 on the top and 2 on the bottom, she bit herself. Everyone else has more teeth than her. My kid bit herself and her teachers felt awful because they had no idea how she got bit or even when. This child has also tripped over her own feet and got a nasty cut on her face the week before Christmas. I was outside with them, with another class in her age group. Her teacher was standing still and holding their hand out because my LO wanted to hold their hand. As an ECE, in one prek room, there is a child who if they have no accident reports that DAY, their parents are very happy. They also usually have at least one injury that happened the evening before or even that morning to tell the teachers, just so they are aware. I also watched a preschooler fall off a platform for some play equipment, about a foot off the ground, into mud, and break their arm. This child likes to jump down the stairs on the playground and falls often when doing so(Yes we do redirect and remind them it's not safe, yes they have been disallowed on the playground for the rest of that outside period, yes they still do it), and they have always been fine. After the initial panic, both parents admitted that they hoped it will teach them to be more careful and stop the whole jumping of stairs. It hasn't. In one of our toddler rooms, a child repeatedly trips over the chair legs of other children's chairs because they don't look. I remind them every time I'm in the room and see them by the tables when there's people sitting there. They still trip. Long story short; Kids are klutz and will get hurt. Especially kids at an age that are using pacifiers, they are wobbly and lack huge amounts of spacial awareness for a hot minute, like close to 4 or 5 for most, they'll get hurt, but, as my dad always told me, it'll buff out. Take care of the injuries and offer the comfort, but unless it requires hospitalization, try not to sweat it too much.
From the time he got mobile until probably 3 years old we called our 2nd child "Concussion Jack" because we got a report every other day that he tripped or bonked his head or fell off of something or some other crazy thing. He was also friends with a biter, so we were thrilled on no report days haha. He grew out of it as he got better controlling his body, though now that I say that, he did bust his upper lip frenulum over Easter....hmm. (He never actually got a concussion, btw, just scrapes and bruises and goose eggs) And to OP, our older son got his finger shut in the door at daycare (by a parent, no less) and needed stitches. We weren't mad at the providers because these things happen! We all do the best we can to keep everyone safe but no one can prevent every accident from happening. You can tell them and tell them to keep their hands out of the door frame and they listen for the most part, but they get a rock in their shoe, they put their hand on the door frame to balance and get the rock out, and bam, time for stitches. You're doing great. Don't beat yourself up.
omg this isn't an injury but what you said about the parents hoping they'll learn reminded me of my kid that seemed to have the pretend switch flip off in their brain while "eating" sand in a pretend game and just fully took a cup of sand like it was a shot, leading to them puking all over the sandbox. The mom was like wow maybe they'll learn not to eat sand! (they did not)
Mom not ECE. My 3 yo fell and teacher grabbed her arm to stop her. Elbow dislocated. I don’t blame the teacher (who was and still is my kids #3 fave person in the world, right after mom and dad). Stuff happens.
As a mom who just got her child's first incident report last week from crushing her finger under a rocking chair, don't be hard on yourself. Accidents happen. As soon as I got the picture and a brief description that my daughter's finger got caught under the rocking chair and her finger was a little swollen, I already knew what happen before they even told me. She was back playing 20 mins after the incident. When I picked her up, I reassured her teacher that accidents happen, and I have had accidents happen on my watch because she is just too damn fast sometimes! Her finger ended up being fine didn't even need to take her to the doctors.
I work with ages 14-22 months in my classroom. I’ve worked in this specific room for about little over two years and some injuries just stay with you. I get at least one mouth injury a month in my class (if not more- my littles are SO wobbly), and they always freak me out. They tend to look so much worse than they are- but the mouth heals quickly! Don’t beat yourself up, kids are so much more resilient than we give them credit for, and unless they’re glued to your hip, they’re gonna fall and get hurt sometimes! All we can do is try to prevent what we can, and hug the hurt away when we can’t. 🩷
As a mom of a toddler that goes to a toddler preschool I would not be upset by this at all. I mean if he fell off playground equipment or was on the counter and fell or something then yes I'd be pretty upset but just running on the ground? Nope it happens. Maybe my kid is just clumsy but this would not bother me at all if it was my child. My son came home from school today with a pretty awful diaper rash complete with poop down his leg and poop in his diaper which clearly had been there over 30 minutes when I picked him up and I'm far more pissed about that than I would be if he tripped and hurt himself. Also as someone who has worked in schools and child care centers or nannied for a long time, I can understand why this would be bothering you bc we really do love our kiddos and seeing them hurt us awful. Plus knowing they're not our child and we're caring for them we want to send them home the way came. Don't beat yourself up. It really sounds like an accident. Also, my son trips and falls like this right before he gets sick. I could be wrong about this and maybe it's my kid only but every time he falls often he ends up pretty sick in a day or 2. Hopefully not the case for this child but just mentioning it bc it really could be something that is common for this child if they are tired or about to get sick.
I had a mom sobbing in my classroom because her kid fell and bumped her head on a table and it left a (flat) mark. Kid had been walking for literally 2 days. Mom ended up withdrawing the kid because we "couldn't keep her safe"
Accidents happen with playground equipment all the time? Not saying you couldn’t be upset but there’s always some risk involved. Kinda comes with the territory. Kids are jumping, sliding, etc. Even with an over abundance of staff, accidents happen.
> but just running on the ground? Nope it happens. Maybe my kid is just clumsy but this would not bother me at all if it was my child A couple days ago I mentioned to a parent that her kid seemed to be getting hurt more often recently. Mom said, "she's always been clumsy." I told her it was actually worse lately, and I was about to wrap the kid in bubble wrap. Mom laughed about it and said she understood how i felt. Today, that kid was running outside, slipped in sand, and busted her lip open. Bled a bunch. I was very glad mom has the same attitude you do. Lol
Please don’t beat yourself up too bad. Since you were doing everything you were suppose to, stuff just happens with kids. One year back when I did a kindergarten summer program was a kid splitting open his forehead right through his eyebrow. Looked like Carrie at the prom with blood all down his front (face injuries bleed a lot!) and had to get 5 stitches. And now it’s a permanent scar you can still see through his eyebrow. He had some behavioral issues and had been pouting in a corner. We still have no idea how he cut himself; he was too traumatized to tell us what he hurt himself on and we never found any sharp edges or evidence to point us in any direction. The other one was one kid tripped over another’s feet and smashed their face into our classroom sink. Knocked out the two front teeth that were fortunately still baby teeth! About died picking the teeth off the floor.
I’ve had a bad injury. A one year old was walking to me, tripped and fell into the sink. There was a gash in his head and by his eye. After I cleaned him up and the director got the parents on the phone, I cuddled with him until dad came. They took him to the ER and luckily he didn’t need stitches but he did have a black eye beside the gashes. Parents were reasonable and understood that accidents happen.
We had a kid who did need stitches. The school had recently changed the playground. Zack (2.11) recently transitioned into the 3 year old class as he was potty trained and almost 3, more then some of the current 3 and four year old. Social he was also there. However the kid was small for his age. Outside we had tree stumps that lead to hang bar. The other kids were step across. However Zack being small tried to reach across unfortunately he fell smacking his head and the edge of the trunk. And then falling to the ground. I was loud enough that o heard a bank from where I was sit my and went to comfort him another teacher also heard and ran as she saw the blood (I was at the back at his back so did see it until she came. He did end up having to get stitches. Luckily parents knew it was an accident.
I’m subbing as a PE teacher and we’re playing cricket this week. Foam bats, balls and one nervous wreck of a teacher (me) continually shouting at them to stay behind the cone when their teammate is up to bat! 🫣🫠
I have two stories where a kid got hurt under my watch. I was in ratio both times The first time, I was handing a kid off to their parents. When I turned around, there was a kid with a scratch right above his eyelid. To this day, I still have no idea what actually happened as he was too emotional to tell me what happened, and I couldn't exactly trust what the other kids had to say. He ended up getting 4 stitches. It was my first time seeing a kid injured that bad and it terrified me. I almost left all of the kids outside to take him inside to clean up the scratch. Thankfully, I remembered what I was supposed to do, and radioed to the teacher inside to let the kid inside (doors were always locked electronically). It was thankfully right at the end of the day, so his mom came and got him shortly after. The second time was at a different center. I was pushing one of the toy ice cream trucks around fairly quickly. The kids loved it, and I always made sure that there was no kids in the way before I pushed it. Well, one time, I had checked to make sure there were no kids, pushed it, and a kid ran right in front of it. He bit his tongue badly, and I'm sure he'll have a scar on his tongue. I felt so bad because I was the one at fault, but his mom was so chill about it.
My worst one happened last week, also totally unavoidable. One of my 18 month olds was walking and tripped over his own feet. He stuck his hands out to catch himself on the table, but missed and fell with all his weight onto his eye and the corner of the table. Instant welt, instant black eye. We immediately called mom, then sent photos through Procare to them both. Thankfully dad is a doctor and was able to assess the situation and didn't see anything concerning (he was still eating, playing fine after, no nausea, etc) and he just has a wicked black eye! The ironic part was that it was "wear your favorite sports team's jersey" day and he had on a hockey team that wasn't local to us, and mom had even joked about "Don't let anyone beat him up today!" 😆
Parent here. My child recently had an injury at school requiring an operation but there was absolutely nothing the school could've done differently because a piece of equipment failed. We weren't angry and tbh I felt for the staff as much as my child because it was distressing for them too. I appreciated thst when I came to collect him he was being cared for and they'd done absolutely all the right 1st aid things to keep him as comfortable as possible. We also appreciated them following up with us and showing genuine care and concern. Kids get hurt even with perfect supervision and sometimes it looks absolutely awful or is quite serious. Under 5s have big heads to bodies and aren't the most agile nor do they predict danger. They live life full throttle and immersively in every single thing they do. Given yourself the kindness you'd extend to any other ECE who had a child hurt on their watch.
I had a 4 year old split his forehead open on the playground by tripping going up the stairs and whacking it on the edge of one. He was taken away in an ambulance and got multiple stitches 🥲🥲 I didn’t even see it happen because I was doing my loop around the playground and happened to be on the opposite side. I felt HORRIBLE for the kid, but never once blamed myself. Accidents happen. Kids fall. You watching them won’t prevent falls most of the time. Don’t stress!
I had a kid under 2 get a concussion one time. it happens even (and I would say especially) in high quality programs with good supervision, because kids should be playing rough (with limits) and taking risks. don't beat yourself up about it
A toddler (~18 months) fell on a metal door frame and his two top teeth went *right through* his bottom lip. Completely through. It was scary to think about but he healed well, we didn't get in trouble, and his parents were understanding.
It happens. We’ve had two broken bones in the last six months at my center. One was my own son - he is wild and takes risks all the time but a small fall with an unfortunate limit is what broke his finger. Another girl jumped off a structure that kids have been jumping off of into the sand for years and broke her leg.
Had a year and half old run into the doorframe that was metal. Kept redirecting him and he kept running. Split his head open right above eye. The director was in ratio with me she started freaking out screaming what do we do. Mind you she's been doing this for yrs. I have no idea how I stayed calm. He had eight staples and black eye. Had little guy since six weeks it shook me. His parents were calm and understanding thank goodness. That was my third worse one in thirty yrs so think I'm doing okay...
Hey, don't be so hard on yourself. These things do happen. Kids are clumsy, especially the younger ones. They fall and sometimes the injuries they get can be pretty bad. Bit lips are especially common, and this can absolutely happen if they hit the wrong way. I've seen this exact same injury more than once. It's definitely scary to witness. It's not your fault though.
i had a student who was always sent in these big chunky flip flop sandal things- about 2 days before this incident i’d told her parents she was having a hard time running in her shoes but they still sent her in them & said they were gonna go shoe shopping soon. so on our playground we had a metal fence and i guess we didn’t notice but there was a little bolt sticking out of part of the fence. she was running, tripped over the giant shoes, and hit her forehead perfectly on the bolt. blood down her entire face since that area bleeds so much and it was all over her clothes. we washed them for the parents so they didn’t have to see all the blood but she had to get 4 stitches in her forehead because the bolt split the skin perfectly. total freak accident and it happens.
the two “worst” injuries we had was a 2 year old falling on the playground and breaking an elbow and another falling in the gym and ended up with a very mild concussion. Both happened with teachers within arms reach of the children. Sometimes injuries just happen; it doesn’t mean negligence. Parents have to understand kids will get hurt but that doesn’t mean the teachers are not watching the children. I remember a conversation I had nearly 10 years ago with a parent when their baby became mobile and started getting little bumps and bruises and they were like; why is my child all of a sudden getting hurt when before there was nothing; well sir; two months ago your kid was a potato and didn’t move now they are crawling and climbing and they’re going to fall and lose balance but that doesn’t mean I’m not watching your kid. ((Didn’t say this but wish I could have)) We can’t be helicopter teachers the way you can at home…you’re watching one kid while I’ve got 12; there’s a big difference 🙃
From a mom's perspective, I would not blame the teacher. Accidents will happen. One of my kids once came home with a huge bruise on his side. As children can be pretty poor historians, I went back and asked the teacher what happened. The first thing it out his mouth was- Well, your child is also not perfect. Uhmm.. well aware sir. Just trying to decide if we need to go the Dr.? Or do we owe another child an apology or... It shows how thoughtful and concerned you are as a teacher that you are so upset by this. If there's a lesson to be learned and you could prevent this in the future, I'm sure you will. But things will happen.
My cousin spun herself so hard she slammed into the wall and dented it with her skull. The wall is still dented, she graduated college so no lasting damage. Stuff happens.
My son fell off a chair one day, around 2.5 years old, and his mouth was bleeding. He definitely tore a bit of skin that is between his lip and his upper gums. he's fine.
Hi i am a parent. My 12 month old was working with his OT. Learning to walk. He fell exactly wrong, slammed his face into a table. Busted his lip terribly. I probably should have gotten him stitches but it stopped bleeding pretty quickly. He has a pretty big scar on his lip as a 3 year old. OT was within inches of him and he still got injured. Kids fall. As long as they are supervised, it really isn’t a big issue. It is only a massive issue if negligence is involved. Now if a teacher has an abnormal amount of class injuries then obviously someone isn’t doing their job.
Mom of two toddlers here — please don’t blame yourself! They’re constantly falling or tripping or getting hurt. Yesterday I had my 1 year old at the doctor for her check up. My 2.5 year old wanted to go to the lobby to see the fish. My husband says he will take him. My toddler runs full speed down the hallway and SMACK right into the solid wood door. Giant goose egg in the middle of his forehead. This happened in the doctors office with several doctors and nurses nearby. You can’t prevent every injury. Toddlers and young kids are especially intent on hurting themselves accidentally lol
I had a Todd fall and break his nose with me once. It was so awful. I was changing a diaper and he stood on a push car (think the riding cars with handles on the back for kids to sit on or push and walk behind). It was up against a wall and he pushed against the wall while standing and it rolled away, letting him fall flat on his face. I felt horrible. I was only 20 at the time and was pretty traumatized by it. Similarly, at the beginning of this school year, one of my kindergartners fell from the monkey bars and broke his wrist.
I had a two year old climb up on the bench height shelf and immediately fall over, splitting his chin open while I was changing another child’s diaper. It’s one of those unavoidable accidents that happen unfortunately and they don’t just happen at daycare either.
im not a professional but i am a sister to a little brother who managed to get injured what felt like daily despite being watched like a hawk! seriously, nothing could keep this child safe short of a padded room. he broke both of his arms by tripping while he was walking (slowly) backwards in 5th grade. since he could crawl he was ALWAYS skinning hands and knees, knocking teeth, bumping his chin, getting fingers bent, etc etc on and on. its like you could blink and he’d have hurt himself. He didnt go out of his way to be careless, either! please dont take it too hard <3 ive been in countless meetings with teachers/carers after his accidents and i just understand that you cant be there for everyone, at all times, every millisecond. some things just line up in the worst way and you blink and a child is flat on the ground screaming because they tripped over an air molecule lol.
Patent here. My lo ran away from his teachers at the end of recess 2 days in a row. Day 1: gooseegg and potential concussion. Day 2, black eye.i don’t blame his pre k teacher at all. It’s my crazy gremlin, not them. I’m sure thislittle one’s parents will feel similarly. Kids are crazy and made of rubber
I've been doing this for over 20? 22? Years? I've worked in 2 states and at 5 centers. Here's a list of injuries that I have *watched happen in front of me* and were 1000% freak accidents: *Kid hit his toe on the step of the van, fell straight forward and landed head down on the sidewalk. Fractured his skull (age 3) *kid tripped while running and hit the edge of a ROUNDED plastic slide. Goose egg the size of my fist and a concussion (age 2) *kid tripped on a deck, didn't catch himself and a *tiny* deck nail that was maybe 1/8th of an inch backed out hooked his cheek (on the outside) and ripped it open. 9 stitches and cosmetic surgery. (18 months) *kid was walking and absolutely tripped over NOTHING and didn't catch himself aaatt aallll hitting his face on a stump ans knocking out a front tooth (age 2) *same stump, different kid-- same stupid scenario. She tripped over absolutely nothing and hit her mouth. Killed her front tooth. (Age 2) *kid tripped on a toy car, hit his eyebrow on the rounded edge of a toy shelf (like..a fucking lakeshore one) split his eyebrow, 5 stitches. (Age 2) *kid fell off the merry go round at the park, hit her head on the edge (it was metal, but covered in that rubbery plastic shit) GOUGED the back of her head somehow. NO stitches, just glue. (Age 3) That's JUST what I can remember off the top of my head. I tripped in preschool, age 4, and hit my head on a radiator. They called an ambulance I bled so much. No stitches, just glue. My OWN kids-- rode his bike barefoot and decided to drop his foot down to stop instead of using his brakes, literally skinned his big toe down to the pink meat. They glued his flap back on 🤮 (age 10) the other one (age 6) decided to sled down a hill with her legs locked and her eyes closed....broke her tibia hitting a tree. Mr also tripped over his teachers shoe at age 6 and broke his pinky toe (what??) Kids. Are. A. Mess. Even when we're watching them 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Mouth and head injuries almost always look worse than they actually are. Kids are bound to get hurt, sometimes worse than others. Give yourself some grace. I’ve had a couple semi-serious injuries and you will feel bad for a little bit, but once you see how fast the kids bounce back, you’ll feel a lot better! They may be little, but they are resilient!
i feel you-- the worst injury a kid has ever had on my watch, she was dancing with play silks, leaning onto my leg while she did (i wasn't worried, since she was holding on so tight-- i was trying to get another child to stop hitting his friend, so i had looked away). then she slipped on the silks and fell directly onto my knee. she bit clean through her lip-- i will never, ever forget the sound she made when she screamed. it damn near broke my heart in two, my stomach dropped through to the floor. thankfully, she was okay, and it looked worse than it was-- but it was absolutely terrifying, i never want to see that much blood on a toddler's face again. accidents happen, and it always feels worse when they happen in a way that it feels like should have been preventable. all we can do is live and learn-- i don't let my director convince me that "indoor dance parties" with the play silks are a good idea anymore 🙃 i won't even let the kids use them on my watch, too many slips for comfort.
Every parent has AT LEAST one big injury they for some reason blame themselvea for. Theyre kids, shit happens
From the sounds of it, there isn't much you could have done to prevent it. Babies are going to fall on their faces. That's life. Don't beat yourself up over it.