You fail and repeat the grade according to policy.

I understand what you are saying. My point about grades is that one day absence will not affect an A student as much as a student that struggles more with classes. Maybe I am wrong. I don't mean to offend.

While I may not like it or completely agree, this is what I will have to do for my son to attend the school he wants rather than homeschool. I thought the dentist excuse being challenged last year was ridiculous but let it go. I never considered this being a problem under ideal student conditions, ie good grades, minimal absences, etc. I was floored when my friend's daughter couldn't return. Our school did away with lockers and don't offer change of clothing. Pretty much if you have an accident you can leave but not return or chose to stay with the stained clothing. You have to check out beforehand so they know the reason.

I will utilize the Christmas break time for this years dentist appt. but I think you are wrong that cases such as this is why schools are forced to make such rules. Last year my son missed 2 days other than the excused dentist appt. He was late twice during the year and tardy, added up to one day total even though he was technically at school and the other he was home sick. He had football practice every morning during the summer from 6-12 and this was the first year he didn't get perfect attendance.. He missed 4 days due to strep and the doctor not releasing him for workouts because of the heat. I know that isn't school but it is school related and shows that we don't allow him to miss school or activities that we have made a commitment to willy-nilly. I personally believe there are plenty of other students that are missing multiple days yearly and their grades are affected which should be the focus here. My son's lowest report card grade was a single B since starting public school and he pulled that up to an A before the end of the year. If his grade is hurt by one day at the dentist, something is gravely wrong. Yet they will make it more difficult on the ones that are great parents/students because they will actually listen and obey even if they disagree with the policy.

Will do.

Thanks for this perspective. I understand that it is because people abuse the system but I think there should be some common sense applied at times. Yes every class matters but honestly one day a year for a routine dentist appt from a straight A student that doesn't even miss the allotted 5 days/semester shouldn't be too big of a deal.

Driving age kids can and do check themselves out. You have to sign a paper at the beginning of the year allowing themselves to do so but they can't check back in even if a parent brings them.

My daughter got a warning for dress code violation because she turned her school id backwards on her lanyard because she didn't like the photo. I actually took the school's side on this issue with her but secretly thought it was stupid. LOL.

I wanted to clarify something. While I understand not taking a day for dentist appt, I think the school is overstepping if I chose to do so when my student doesn't usually miss even the 5 days per year and is a straight A student. Our school starts at 7:00 and ends at 2:30. Our dentist opens at 9:00 and handles emergencies first. It closes at 4:00. My son has football from 2:30-6:00 daily unless there is a game and then they stay until after the game. At best I could get a 10:00 scheduled appt which means leaving at a little before 9:00 to make it to dentist. He would get one full class in on block days. If I only took him to the dentist and it took an hour, he would not be able to get back to the school until 12:00 if we skipped lunch. On block days he would only be able to make max 2 classes but possibly only 1 afternoon class if timing fell between classes. Can't check in with doctor's excuse until next class. This is why I choose one day per school year to take all my family for their cleanings so it is over and done with on one day. My son hasn't been to the doctor in two years other than physical which we do in summer months. Even so I still say if a doctor gives an excuse you are overstepping if you must know time and regulate whether I have been able to make it back by then. JMO.

Yeah if it wasn't for football, he would be homeschooled. The state law allows homeschoolers to participate in sports through the local school if the principal doesn't object. Back when my husband coached soccer for the middle school, he asked the principal to allow a local homeschooler to join the team as we needed more players. The middle school principal didn't see a problem with it but wanted to check with high school principal first. She shot it down. She said too many homeschoolers don't do their work. She even went so far as to say that she called the parent to speak to them on the issue and they were hiking during school hours. She said this proved that homeschoolers are lax in their teaching and therefore should not be allowed. She didn't want to give more people a reason to homeschool so denied our request which was supported by the middle school principal. She is the same principal we have now.

My son came home bragging about Brussel sprouts that he ate at his girlfriend's house one dinner. If looks could kill.....I have been trying to get him to try them for ages. His response is that maybe I should try her recipe. Turns out we cook them exactly the same! Other than that, my kids love turnip fries and radishes cooked in stews instead of potatoes.

Honestly the one that angered me most is the no check-in rule. Really can they not use common sense? They claim it is because too many students, driving age, would leave at lunch to eat fast food and check back in afterwards. They did say that usually it was before their lunch shift was over and not cutting classes. I don't see a problem there either. Sorry. Even so, if you can't leave to change clothes because of an accident and return within 15 min, really, just really.... :cursing: No we really don't have a big truancy issue here. If anything they want to be overly strict about everything before it happens. We have uniforms and they do a uniform check each morning. They check everything from belt, logos, non-hoody jackets, haircolor and length of boy's hair, etc.

Penalty is failure and have to repeat the grade. I don't know anybody who actually had to repeat the grade so it could be a threat and not something they would do but who knows. I also don't know anyone that missed that many days either. My son doesn't miss unless really sick mostly because he loves football. He knows he isn't allowed to practice/play that day if he isn't at school. Our rule and I think they school's new rule as well. One of the few I understand.

They don't allow phones. I actually tell my son to disobey this rule as he stays so late for football and the finish time varies. I have complained about that rule because of this but they said that few on the team don't drive themselves and have to deal with it. It is best for the school to have no phone policy. While I understand phones are an issue in school, I refuse to let my child not have a way to contact me from 2:30-6:00 when practice ends. The first week of school the practice went to 8:00 and my son texted me to let me know because the day's practice schedule isn't posted until the morning of on the football locker room board. Oh and I was told that anyone that drives can leave their phone in their cars for the end of the day. My son doesn't drive yet because of his age.

My oldest son attends our local public high school. They have reduced the amount of absences to 5 per semester without doctor's excuse. Last year we had an issue with the school wanting the doctor's excuse time stamped so they could determine if you had ample time to return to school that same day. I scheduled my son a dentist appointment middle of the day along with the rest of my 6 children. We make one trip to the dentist twice a year for cleaning, once in summer. When he returned with the excuse the next day the school told him that he had time to come to school, leave to go to dentist, and return in same day rather than our keeping him out all day. He explained that the appt was for all of us and he had to wait. They said that wasn't their problem and next time it was going to be an unexcused absence. Our dentist is an hours drive away. It aggravates me! Fast forward to this year. They have now made the rule that you cannot check into the school unless you have a doctor's excuse. You are not allowed to check out and back in at all without one. My friend's daughter bled through her shorts so she checked herself out, drove the 15 min to her house, changed clothing, and returned to school. They refused to allow her to return because she didn't have a written valid excuse. Her mom came, made a scene, and nothing was changed. It is policy, no exceptions, they said. If your car breaks down on the way to school and you are more than 30 min late then you cannot check in to school. Within first 30 min you are marked as tardy which counts as a half day absence. (Keep in mind that you are only allowed 5 absences per semester.) I think the new policy is completely ridiculous. What do you think? Another policy they started is not allowing your child to be checked out unless it is between class times. Seems simple enough to pick up your kid on the scheduled times but it isn't so simple. Our school is on a partial block schedule. They alternate days for the blocks, odd classes and even classes on separate days, with the exception of Fridays. Fridays they attend all classes so the timing is different for Fridays. If they have any special things planned the classes get sped up for the day. Many times there is pep rally, special presentation in the gym, etc. I try to leave my son there as long as possible before checking him out but sometimes the timing doesn't match up exactly. I arrived on an off time to pick my son up and had to wait 10 minutes before they released him. I was told it doesn't matter the excuse, whether a family emergency or planned appt, they will not discuss the reasons as this is their policy. 10 min didn't hurt us that day but if I have a family emergency and the school won't allow it, I think I would explode. Ridiculous. It isn't a large school btw so there are not that many students checking out at all times imo. Oh and while I am venting.....one last one I promise...New policy about lunches too. I didn't realize my son's lunch account was low until the morning of so I handed him a $20. He came home starving because they no longer allow you to pay for school lunch at lunch time in line. You must pay online. While I understand the no negative balance policy, allowing a child to eat without paying, I cannot understand not allowing the child to pay beforehand. When I brought my daughter a large bought salad, from Walmart, I wasn't allowed to give it to her. Why? It wasn't in a lunchbox and was identifiable as to where it came from. It cannot be visible or in a plastic bag, only a lunch bag. I had to go home and return with the same salad in her lunch box. We only live minutes from the school. Oh and I had to wait another hour because the drop off stuff has to fit between classes and I missed it by leaving the school to get the lunch box. Sometimes I wonder. Does your public school have rules like this?

Any recommendations for a Japanese language program? My kids are very active in judo and the instructor requires lots of Japanese vocabulary. The kids love it so I thought I would look into Japanese as the foreign language rather than the usual Spanish but am not finding much out there with reviews. Anyone have any recommendations?

Why do you homeschool? Are the schools in your area not up to par with what you can give your child by homeschooling? If this is not the case, the local schools are great academically, would you still homeschool? When you started homeschooling, did you intend to continue through a particular grade? Has this changed over the years?

I do. I have only made it through the first week's lessons but it works well for us. I love not having to carry around the books if we are on the go. My daughter uses a regular notebook to write the answers rather than the workbook. My son uses FLL 1 and only does oral lessons.

Why not? Because you don't feel the same? There are others that agree with her statements just as there are others that agree with Albeto's.

For some reason I can't quote. Albeto, I wanted to address this.... You asked me to link where you said everyone in opposition to LGBT rights is of the same character as JD. I misspoke. I actually meant that everyone that shares some of his beliefs in regards to LGBT rights are not automatically wrong in those beliefs because JD is not moral character to be an example or spokesperson for those beliefs. He is a hypocrite but that doesn't mean our shared beliefs are wrong. (Again, I don't share all his beliefs...many are only slightly similar.)

YESSSSSSS! This is what I was trying to say. Thank you.

No I don't care that you don't leave the Duggars alone. I actually understand the thought of relishing in their demise especially considering you are one that are greatly affected by their opposing views. There are many times that I see someone that I am opposed to fall and I am instantly happy or I just like to daydream about them getting knocked off their high horse. I understand. During those times it is difficult to pull that side back and take a step back and see that it isn't that simple. When this happens others get hurt. As for the apology, I can only say that I disagree with you on that one. There are many that feel as he does in regards to LGBT rights and has every right to that belief. (Let me say that I don't share his beliefs completely and am appalled by many of them.) His failing as a moral standard doesn't necessarily imply his policies were wrong and therefore doesn't owe an apology to LGBT supporters. If he had decided that his views and policies that he wanted to implement were wrong then he would owe an apology. I don't believe he has changed his opinion on that aspect nor have many of his supporters. Basically I am saying the policies merits should be judged on them alone and not the moral code of the person in charge or pushing for these policies. Otherwise what happens if a person of upstanding moral character arrives to step into JD's position? Does the policy of death or life in prison then become a valid punishment for same sex relations because the person promoting it is a person of upstanding character? I hope i am making myself more clear.

I am not saying that everyone believed that way but if it is brought up today most will brush over it as something that he did as an adult that ultimately affected his wife/family and shouldn't have a large part in determining whether his policies/presidency was a positive or negative one. Ultimately he was a man that cheated not unlike many men/women do daily. His wife made a choice that she was most happiest with but it was a choice only she could make and ultimately would be faulted regardless of which one she chose. I don't see this so unlike Josh and Anna. Clinton was placed in authority by not only himself but as a representation of not only Democrats but the American people as a whole and he let people down by cheating whether we agree with his politics or not. Josh was placed in a position of power and was outspoken about policies while living a double life. I have no problem with people pointing out that he is not the person to be accusing people of moral faults. If I shared his beliefs about LGBT rights, which I don't, I would not want him to be my spokesperson. However, when it comes down to it, the policies that he was trying to implement should be attacked on their own merits/faults not on his person. I understand there is some overlap but what happens when the next guy that steps up to the platform is of moral standing and doesn't share JD's faults? Are the policies then valid? I hope I am making myself clear.

I believe what Josh has done is horrible. He has given Christianity a big black eye in the world's view even if many Christians don't agree with him or his type of Christianity. Some want a better apology from him but why does he owe any of us an apology? He didn't cheat on us. If anything he owes the people he harmed an apology which would be his family, fans, and other Christians. He placed himself on a pedestal as an example of moral Christian character, failing miserably, but not every Christian put him there. You may say he owes the apology to LGBT community because of his vile actions while on the pedestal but that is a different topic. If you feel strongly about his opposition to LGBT rights, go after him for those reasons. The fact that he accused them of low morals while cheating is a convincing point when considering whether he should be in a position of authority on the topic. However, his failures morally doesn't mean that everyone that is in opposition to LGBT rights is of the same despicable character. As for his wife's choice on how to handle his infidelity, shouldn't that too be her own? Her choice? I remember another man that had many policies that people all over the country disagreed with, he was in the top position of authority in this country, and once his cheating came to light, he was forgiven by his wife. Most agreed that while his actions were wrong, what he does privately as a consenting law abiding citizen should not be a factor in determining if he was a good president. I am not saying that the situation is exactly the same but there are enough similarities that we should pause and consider if this was our family, friend, or person that represent our views would we be as harsh if the roles were reversed. For myself, I pray that Anna gets the help that she needs to make the best decision she can for her family whether that includes Josh or not. It will be difficult either way and in the world's eyes someone will always be disappointed in her choices. For this reason I hope she is able to make the decision for herself and kids alone. Edited to add that for me personally I don't understand how people can be a follower of ATI even though I am Christian. It baffles me. I also don't understand how JD could lobby for the death penalty or life imprisonment for same sex relations. Even though I believe homosexuality is a sin, I cannot fathom wishing harm to another person because they do not share my same belief.

I could not agree more with you Cindy in Fl. You said it much better than I ever could.