What a day!

Well girls, this day was one for the books. Three sadly bizarre events in the morning, at noon, and at the end of the day.
8:00 a.m. One of my fifth graders (KH) came to school high. Since his Dad was released from prison last week, he is free tomorrow to take KH to the Dr. to get drug tested, so that CPS can do something. Our principal came around to ask us to take up a collection so that we can get forty seven dollars to pay for the drug test. KH's Dad has Medicaid, but it won't pay for a drug test for a ten year old.
12:00 RW, who is emotionally disturbed but has done well this year, had a meltdown when I asked him to go to the back of the lunchline because he had been running in the hall. He cried and wailed for 15 minutes. I sent my class on to lunch, and stayed in the room with RW. After half of my lunch break was gone, the asst. principal passed the room, looked inside, and asked if RW had gotten a death message or something. No, he just got sent to the end of the line, I said. Between sobs and wails, RW was coaxed out of my room and into the counselor's office, where he stayed until 2:30. He told the counselor he was having a bad day. (!)
2:30 We had an ARD meeting with a Mom who couldn't make it but was on the phone. After about 40 minutes of exhanging ideas on why BL isn't making much progress in fifth grade, the mom revealed to us that BL is on 4 kinds of medicine: one for ADHD, one for clinical depression, one for oppositional defiant disorder, and one to make her sleep at night. All of us sitting around the table nearly fainted. The asst. principal wrote OMG on his notepad and held it high. Then the mom revealed that BL had been hospitalized last year for schizophrenia when voices told her who to kill.

I came home and took a warm bath.