"Why would they do that?"

This week Francis had her second encounter with stealing at school. A few weeks ago, she told me someone had taken her colored pencils from her locker and today she came home heartbroken at the loss of her two favorite books. She had finished SpookyBuddies and had taken it to school to lend it to a classmate. Careful to put her new bookplate in it with her name, she packed it up and was excited to share her first chapter book. She also took with her, her new book, SantaBuddies. This was something she had asked for many many times and finally received for Christmas. She was on, I think, maybe chapter 6 as of Monday. Anyway, she and her girlfriend, took their books to lunch with them (they are allowed to read at lunch time). After lunch is recess and so the girls set their books together next to Francis's lunchbox and 15 minutes later when recess was over, sadly... the books had disappeared. She has been heartbroken. She came home and started telling me the story and seemed quite composed until she got to the part about how they came back to their lunch boxes...and then she started crying. "Why would they do that? Why would someone take them if they weren't theirs?" I just hugged on her and told her it would be okay.

After gaining her composure, we worked on a plan. Francis LOVES plans. She thrives on charts and graphs, etc. So, she decided we should make signs "like when a dog goes missing" and post them up around her school. The signs were made, and went up yesterday. I was so proud of her. She took them to school, went to the office and asked the principal if she could hang them up and then proceeded to put them in the cafeteria, library, office and music room. She said that today she's going to put one up in the art and science rooms. I can not tell you how both sad and adorable this experience has been to watch.

I would be shocked if the books showed up, and I suppose it is a good life lesson, but bummer... I hate she has to learn it.