Teacher Finds Heartbreaking Note Her ‘Academically Lowest’ But ‘Kindest’ Student Left In Her Desk Before Suddenly Leaving The School
Some suspected it was a sign of something bigger going on.
PeopleImages.com - Yuri A | Shutterstock In most cases, people are struggling with problems we know nothing about, regardless of their age. Unfortunately, this means that children are not unaffected.
One teacher shared in a Reddit post that she knew one of her students didn’t have the easiest life, but she had no idea how deep those sentiments ran until the girl left her class.
A little girl left behind a heartbreaking note for her teacher to find in her desk after she left the school.
“Despite being one of the academically lowest in the class, this student has the kindest and most generous heart of any child I’ve ever met,” the teacher shared in her post. “When any kid was hurt or crying, they called for her because she was so compassionate, would get them Band-Aids, escort them to the office or just rub their backs while they cried.”
Although the kid was as kind as could be, the teacher knew she didn’t have the greatest home life.“This student’s mom, however, was a real piece of … work,” she explained. “Her mom never acknowledged me in the morning line or even said hello during open house. Mom also never answered emails or showed up for her kid in any real way.”
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“Cut screen to yesterday,” she continued. “Out of the blue, my student tells me it’s her last day and she isn’t coming back anymore. Sure enough, today she was gone.” While this saddened the teacher, it was nothing compared to how she felt after looking in the student’s desk.
“The student left behind her binder, though,” she shared. “On the shell, she had written that she ‘feels sad that she is so dumb.’ Feels like she ‘had zero brain cells in her brain, hates her life and herself and doesn’t like sharing a room in a tiny apartment with her mom’ (who I came to learn from her daughter is often out with her male ‘friends’).”
Although this broke the teacher’s heart, it was what she read next that really affected her. “Then my student wrote, ‘Even though I don’t have much, at least I still have the best teacher, Mrs. AC,’” she recalled. “My eyes welled up in class and of course my students were all staring right at me so I had to keep it together.”
“We never know what’s going on in someone’s head,” she concluded. “Wish I could’ve done more.”
Some commenters wondered if this note was more than just something the student accidentally left behind.
While the teacher seemed content to write off the situation as a sweet occurrence that touched her deeply, others weren’t so sure it wasn’t a sign of something bigger. “Honestly, I’d call DCFS about the mom leaving her alone and see if you can get someone else keeping an eye on her,” one person wrote.
Another added, “I’m in no way saying CPS is perfect, but we only saw what’s visible from the outside … which isn’t great. Until someone looks at the inner goings on of the home we cannot assume they will be okay.”
“The signs this child [is] exhibiting [are] very likely emotional abuse at least and very likely neglect too,” a third person said. “I can say with experience that we don’t get the idea we’re ‘stupid’ on our own.”
Depression in young children can be a sign of emotional abuse.
The American Society for the Protective Care of Children noted that one of the indicators of emotional abuse in children shows up when the child “is withdrawn, shows signs of depression and apathetic.”
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While it can’t necessarily be said that this child was apathetic, as she was so kind and caring, one could make the argument that her note was a sign of depression. Instead of an innocent note left behind by a child who knew she would miss her teacher, this could have very possibly been a cry for help.
If you or someone you know has been a victim of child abuse, there are resources available to help. Call 1-800-4-A-CHILD (1-800-422-4453) to speak with a crisis counselor 24/7.
Mary-Faith Martinez is a writer with a bachelor’s degree in English and Journalism who covers news, psychology, lifestyle, and human interest topics.