One of your 4th grade female students is very well developed physically and looks as if she is 15 instead of 9 years of age. Today you heard a group of 5th grade boys commenting on her body in a lewd and humiliating manner. Two other teachers also heard these comments but blew them off as "boys will be boys," and "she needs to get used to it."
I would be appalled if I heard another teacher say "she needs to get used to it" in reference to a nine year old girl or if another teacher excused the boys' behavior by saying "boys will be boys". These are examples of things we cannot say as educators or as models for young children. We must not enforce objectification of women by saying that it is just the way things are and everyone needs to adjust. The first step I would take in addressing this issue is to immediately talk to the boys as soon as I heard this conversation. I would arrange a meeting in the principal's office as soon as possible. I would discuss this issue with the principal as privately as possible as to not embarrass the girl further. I would have this discussion with the principal over the phone as well as over an email so I would have a written document of the situation. During the meeting, the principal and I would decide on an appropriate punishment. My suggestion would be that the boys would have to submit a one page single-spaced paper to both the principal and I with an apology and explanation of why his behavior was inappropriate. In the classroom, I would incorporate a character lesson on respect and specifically address the impact of lewd comments.
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