I am glad that this went well for you and that the principal listened.

Thank you Freckles73 and Lecka for the suggestions! I'm feeling pretty good about all the options that we can explore now. There are many that I wouldn't considered. Thank you everyone. Ours asks for money and/or time. I'll be giving time if they'll have me.

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Thank you for the link Jen- your blog posts are always well thought out. I have a couple different moms that I need to talk to and figure out plans for January. Some may want to read your post. In the past, the playdate/planned learning experiences have been simply crazy because the energy of the kids is out of this world. Fun but eye popping. :) The sanity factor/chance to breathe is huge for me, but when I look at what other women have dealt and are dealing with....I, and many in my generation, are so spoiled. Even having this forum as a resource is a gift that our parents didn't have. One thing that has surprised me is how many people think that we are paying tuition for DD's charter school. I didn't realize that most people have no idea what a charter school is. It's been an interesting week to say the least.

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Thank you for the suggestions. I will look into the mother's morning out groups, co-ops and talk with his teacher and quiet time will have to happen.

It's not the end of the world but I am mourning it a bit. His preschool does studies with him that I don't even think to do, other kids to play with, used to being without Mom and gives me a break and time to do projects without plopping him in front of the TV. Dh works long hours so it's just me much of the time. I feel like I am a better mom when I'm not "on" all day, everyday. I am sad to see this go.

Have you ever played before? I would go to a shop and bring your teacher or another violinist with you- even if its for renting instead of owning. If you are starting, you may not know what is comfortable for you for chin rest, shoulder rest, if you want a large full size, a smaller full size or even 7/8 size and what sound you want from your violin- a bright/loud sound or deep and mellow and so forth. Renting may be a great option for you until you figure these things out for yourself.

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I'm guessing this could be tweaked a bit for the non-religious: DD's teacher starts each lesson with a prayer and thanking God for the gift of music. She talks a lot about how music is used to praise God and, now that we are prepping for a concert, that you invite your audience to celebrate, share in the music and praise with you, the performer. She also does a lot of relaxation exercises so DD's lessons- swaying to the music while focusing on a point and so forth.

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Welcome!

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Woot! I am glad you have a good sense of humor. We all need it with kids!

Rereading your post.... :blushing: I am so embarrassed. Sorry! Going for another cup of coffee now.

Oh my goodness! I read the "smarties" part as in "the teacher wanted easy kids in her class and found a way to get them." Some of the teachers in my family have watched co-workers get weighted classes (as in a class of easy kids or a class of kids with challenges) so that the test scores are swayed and the teacher with the low test scores is let go at the end of the year, not given a raise and so forth. In some cases, the weighting is to help a teacher that has trouble with classroom management. In other cases, it has been done intentionally to make someone look good or bad. I completely misunderstood what you wrote.

There are a lot of reasons that a teacher's class can be weighted and some of them have nothing to do with that particular teacher- and some do. Do you know that the teacher weighted her class? Or did someone else? I have what may be a naive thought for you: Considering that this class is weighted, the teacher is not responding to your daughter positively and your daughter has some challenges- perhaps this could help in your efforts to get more help for your daughter than she already has. I don't know when schools start considering aides and such for kids, (she doesn't have an aide at this point?)-but perhaps the teacher would jump to have someone, in addition to herself, with your daughter. Perhaps this teacher would have needed an aide if her classroom had not been weighted.

:grouphug: Hugs.

Thanks from us as well! DS requested his own Wormy for Christmas. :)

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I asked a similar question on this board a month or two ago. At the time we were using Life of Fred and Rosie's educationunboxed.com videos for math (c-rods). It was suggested we add in Singapore, which we did and DD loves it. I can not get her to put down the workbook once she starts. I like it even though I am not overly found of workbooks in general. I really like introducing the concepts with the c-rods and games (educationunboxed.com) and, as an afterschooler, I like that this hands-on "fun" option is available to us when the kids are wiggly. The C-rods are something my preschooler and K'er can both do. Singapore works better on days when the kids are quieter and DD is in a study mood. I do feel like Singapore will catch any gaps and it gets DD to practice putting her pen to paper to do math.

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