msjones
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Posts posted by msjones
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I teach piano here at home. I suggest doing it first thing each day, and sitting by your child as he/she practices.
We only practice for 15 min at a time, unless the child wants to do more.
We've had very few battles with this arrangement. I enjoy the practicing more when there is no outside teacher. The lack of pressure seems to help. I used to feel frantic for them to ace the song before the next lesson. Now, we just work on each new skill/song as long as necessary.
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You have the right to request copies of those tests and any other records they have prior to the mtg. I would get all of those before. Postpone meeting until rcd. There is no need for secrecy, ask them to fax or email.
I always make sure I have all tests and IEP goals from each person prior to mtg. So, I can go over and mark what I agree/disagree w/.
The idea is to bowl you over w/too much info. at meetings. You need to be as prepared. Make sure you ask by email, b/c it is written. I think wrightslaw has record requests or sample letters.
The more professional looking the better. Also, good tip is take goodies, it makes everyone happy.
Need any other tips, just pm me.
"The idea is to bowl you over w/too much info. at meetings."
--I have to disagree.
When I taught public school I participated in many IEP meetings, and never once did we all agree beforehand that the goal was to frustrate or "bowl over" a parent. Certainly, a lot of information is presented quickly (especially at some of the initial meetings), but that is because there is a lot to talk about and usually not a lot of time.
I agree that a parent in an IEP meeting should be prepared to take notes, ask questions, and obtain all relevant paperwork; but I have never known any school personnel to deliberately attempt to aggravate or overwhelm a parent.
If you feel the meeting is too rushed, or you don't understand a lot of the test results or anything else, ask for another meeting to clarify what you need to know. The school personnel will want you to understand everything, and should be glad to meet with you again. It may be helpful to have another person come with you, so you'll have 2 sets of ears to take in the info.
The goal of the meeting will be to begin to develop a plan to best serve your child at school. I hope it won't feel adversarial or defeating. It could be the beginning of a very positive relationship with the school -- I hope so!
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:lol::lol::lol: Oh, I am seriously wiping away tears here. These stories are all hilarious, but I think pooping out Jesus might get the trophy. Msjones, these should make you feel much, much better, no?
:lol::lol::lol:
Definitely!
But, on a more serious note...I do find that these kinds of occasions (when my child does something truly mortifying in public) are good for me and my mom-hood.
I'm sorry to say that I went through a phase where I really believed (and it pains me to write this) that my kids were immune to most icky behavior.
By now, however, I'm thoroughly convinced that I do NOT have it all figured out. ;)
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Oh, let's see. There was the day in church when the pastor called the children forward for the children's sermon. We were having a baptism that day, and the pastor was talking about that. Catherine was 2.5, and she said, "That's the baby!" Pastor Mark said, "Yes, and we're going to welcome him into God's family." Catherine, who was sitting next to the pastor and speaking into his mike, then said, "He came from his Mommy's egg and his Daddy's sperm and then he came out his Mommy's v*gina!"
There were about 500 people in that service.......
And then the following week, during communion, as we were going up there was the pause as the worship band changed songs. Catherine chose that moment to say, "We're going to eat the Body and drink the wine and Jesus will go down our esophagus and then we will POOP OUT JESUS!"
We switched to a different service time after that.
WOW. :rofl:
I'm pretty sure no one can beat that. She sounds like a fun kid! I'm betting you'll have a lot more stories about her...
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I'll do it. We sit in the FRONT row (actually the 3rd row, but 1st one with people in it). All 7 of us. When the baby toy with the teething handle went down in front of the pew in front of us, I was shocked to learn that when it is squeezed (or thrown across the pew) IT HAS MUSIC!! Our church is typically full with 400 or so including those in the balcony with a bird's eye view of what my urchins are up to.
It's all good. Jesus himself said "Let the little children come unto me" :) He probably knew they weren't going to be perfectly behaved.
ETA: Now everyone in church just knows that a good day for us is no music boxes get thrown across church. They're very sympathetic - we have the guts to sit up there. AND I think they're secretly happy that the attention is on someone else's kids :)
:001_smile:Good one. Be sure to write it in a baby book or somewhere! (Or maybe it's one of those things you could never forget...)
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My son threw a paper airplane.
During the church service.
:eek: :toetap05:
I asked him later what he could possibly have been thinking...
He wanted to see how far it would fly.
He found out (along with many in the congregation) that it would fly up to the 2nd row.
Anyone willing to humor me with their story?
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What an incredible book list from AngieW in Texas. I'll be keeping that!
For the OP, I'd definitely switch things up -- at least a bit.
My kids have never, ever complained that the Sonlight cores we do are boring -- they love it and want to do it first each day. I hear kids feel the same about Story of the World, although we haven't used that.
For your math, we LOVE the RightStart math games. They could easily supplement whatever curriculum you settle into. Again, my kids never complain about the games and want to do them every day. So fun! And easy to align with whatever topic you do in your 'regular' math each day.
Also, Susan Wise Bauer would never aprove of this, but we have loved it -- Bravewriter. Check out the Bravewriter web site for some great ideas for creative, soul-searching (for your twins!)writing. We use Bravewriter in addition to some of SWBs recommendations (WWE, copywork, dictation, grammar), and it has been a delightful addition to our school days.
Any of these would be fairly easy to 'add on' -- as opposed to major curriculum overhaul.
It sounds like you have great kids. Good luck with keeping your homeschool challenging and exciting!
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a voice of reason!!!:)
My pediatrician (a calm, conservative gal, in my opinion) said the opposite.
She is strongly recommending the vaccine for children and young adults. She has had several young patients hospitalized for it this summer, and said she hopes people will take it seriously and get the vaccine.
This is a doctor who has never recommended flu shots for us in the past. (I've never had one...) This year, we'll be getting them.
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Time is on your side!
Really, there are very few 2nd graders (even the good readers -- like your son) who can spell most words correctly most of the time. I taught 2nd grade for 5 years, so I've known a lot of 2nd grade spellers, and yours sounds as if he's doing fine.
Just keep plugging away, gently correcting his mistakes. I agree with a previous poster that you'd have the same 'problem' with any spelling program, so I certainly wouldn't suggest changing programs.
Have you contacted the AAS folks with your question? We use AAS (I'm very pleased with it), and I have found lots of helpful, encouraging information on their site.
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A smile and a "no, thank you" works well in my neighborhood.
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You know...the idea of being condescending to a parent that has a child in public school, or making judgements/assumptions about them, or simply down right snark is just fanning the flames in the perception of Them vs Us.
Its like the Mommy wars, which mom is better. SAHM brag about the wonders of being with their children, Working Moms are bragging about all the perks of their job, and as long as there's one willing to look down on another's choices, there will always be the Mommy Wars.
I want ppl to respect my stance as a homeschooler. I cannot fathom demanding that, while insulting their choices.
Some parents just aren't cut out for homeschooling, just as homeschoolers aren't cut out for public school. There are women who are genuinely miserable if at home full time. Its not that they don't love their children, its simply that a day of having nothing but their children leaves them feeling frustrated and trapped. They need something more than housework and child raising to be happy.
I'd rather a Mom who sent her kids to school, worked full time and was happy to see her kids at the end of the day, than a mom that resented being at home full time.
different things for different people...none of which requiring snark or insults, or looking down upon.
There are many that look down upon me as a homeschooler. That's their problem, not mine. I refuse to engage in the battle of whose a better parent. Its ridiculous.
:iagree:
I started responded along the same lines earlier today and never posted it.
I've been finding a lot of this "Us vs. Them" tone on this board lately, and I don't like it.
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Tie a big pack of sugarless gum to a helium balloon.
I've done this at my boys' parties for years, and it's always a hit.
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I don't have time to read the whole thread, but...
Chances are, the teacher is expected to send home those notes during the first week/s of school as a way to communicate school policy about snacks. She probably did not intend to criticize your supervision of your daughter's nutrition.
When I was teaching, those kinds of notes were mass-produced in the office by someone other than the teacher. They were one more annoying thing I had to remember to do during those first busy weeks of school.
I'd bet the teacher doesn't even remember which kids had those notes sent home and which ones didn't.
So, if I were you -- I'd be irked, but would save my energy for a different type of problem and wouldn't send the note.
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I don't eat before early exercise; it just gives me time to think of reasons not to do it! The best system for me is to get up and GO. If it's just 30 min or so, I do fine without food.
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Another part of the problem is I am the only homeschooler in the family. Everyone on my dh's side of the family is an educator. My sil is an assistant principal and her daughter is only 6 and adopted from China and reading anything you hand to her..Narnia, whatever. The other sil has a daughter 5 adopted from China and she is also reading...
If they all work in traditional school settings, then they should know many, many 7 1/2 year-olds who are still reading haltingly. ;)
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I'm an aggressive de-clutterer, since we have virtually no storage in our tiny house. But my stack would still be at least 15 feet high!
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Everything we are using now, or everything we own? Include scheduled lit books or not?
Everything you have in your house that you would call "homeschool stuff."
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Humor me as I clean out my homeschool closet.
If you put all of your homeschool curricula in a single stack, approximately how high would it stack?
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This situation is a prime example of dress codes being a disciplinary matter removed from individual teacher discretion. They refer the offending student to the vice principal or principal for a dress code infraction. No big deal. I am enclosing our district's code and policy . http://www.council-bluffs.k12.ia.us/stu_serv/Student-Dress-Code-07.pdf I think it is fairly clear and enforceable. It is a tough issue to address as many students must procure their clothing from older siblings or thrift stores and compliance with the code is not a primary concern. Thank goodness Britney Spears naughty schoolgirl look is done with. I am sure the designers, marketers and buyers for the stores will come up with some new fad that degrades young women soon enough. They always do . I wonder though with the new maxi dress trend if we are not coming to the point where the pendulum is swinging back toward a level of respect for self . I am very, very grateful that we are able to home educate so that dd can have her character shaped by other forces than mass marketing schemes that debase and demean young women.
This is similar to our district's policy, but it's the enforcement that is the problem.
And, yes, I agree that fashion may be swinging back to larger clothing. I notice a lot of long vests and cardigans in the fall ads. I hope so!
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My dh deals with this. He keeps a very large, unflattering t-shirt for those who dress inappropriately but who don't actually cross the line into "go to the office" territory. If you can imagine, certain "adjustments" will make something unacceptable suddenly acceptable, so it depends on how they're wearing what they're wearing. A t-shirt works for those borderline situations.
So, does he just approach the girl, tell her that her shirt is too tiny or too tight, hand over the shirt, and carry on? Or does he pull her aside? The problem is that doing it publicly is humiliating, and pulling her aside for a private conversation about her sexy clothing seems a bit creepy.
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When I taught high school the administration handled dress code violations. So a male teacher could simply tell the office/admin. the student's name and she would would be called out of class to handle the situation.
I know some female teachers addressed girls directly but in reality in most cases if the girl was going to go home to change it had to involve the office at some point anyway. What is the teacher going to do in the classroom or hallway to fix it?
The 'plan' is for teacher's to notify the office, and the office brings a large t-shirt. But, you can see that then that teacher is seen as having noticed the "hot" girl.
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In my high school we weren't allowed to wear, among other things, tank tops, half shirts, and shorts that were above the tips of the fingers, as well as t-shirts with vulgar sayings or tobacco ads (of course, this was 20 years ago, but I wish it still existed).
We were sent home to change and counted as tardy when we got back. Enough tardies and we got detention.
This is not the policy at my husband's school. The parents often don't even dress that conservatively.
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No, one could not reasonably say that. There is a mom at my gym who, gee, looks artificially enhanced and wears revealing clothes to the point of absurdity. I look! And I am not into that.
A male teacher should be able to tell a student that certain clothes are not appropriate for class. My dh has told me of female students coming to class in clubbing outfits, not appropriate for a welding class.
The problem, however, is that the male teacher then earns the reputation of teacher-who-notices-girls'-breasts.
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I wonder what all you gals think about this -- especially those of you who have teen daughters.
Is it best for a male teacher/coach to just ignore it if a girl who is 'falling out' of her top, or to point it out so she can make necessary adjustments?
Pointing it out could be seen as helpful, but also as gawking/'checking her out' (one could say that he shouldn't have noticed that sort of thing at all).
NOT pointing it out could be seen as appropriate (the male teacher averted his eyes), or as lecherous (male teacher percieved as enjoying a bit of exhibitionism unbeknownst to teen girl).
(By the way, lets assume that the teacher/coach is not able to leave his class/group and go to find a female teacher...in the middle of teaching, giving a test, etc. Otherwise, that would be the obvious solution.)
"Us vs Them" Does it need to be this way?
in General Education Discussion Board
Posted
After skimming through the 'Facebook homeschooling attack' thread, and another similar thread recently, I'm thinking about the "us vs them" phenomena.
I agree that it can be very difficult to be publicly confronted about schooling/parenting choices. And some people are, of course, very rude and arrogant during those confrontations. I don't defend their rudeness.
However, if we're homeschooling, we have chosen a lifestyle that is considered alternative. And so, I think we'll be disappointed if we're expecting others to easily accept it. People will want to know why we're homeschooling. People will think we aren't qualified. People will think we are making a big mistake. Of course they will.
And I'm always sorry to see discussions by homeschoolers about what terrible choices public/private schools in general are -- in response to blanket criticisms of homeschooling. (i.e. What terrible parents, teachers, school officials...those poor kids...they'll never get a decent education, my child would never darken the door, pitying/slamming/laughing at parents who are glad to see school starting up, etc.)
How is this any different from the parents at a soccer game slamming homeschoolers?
I do understand that a forum of this type is set up to provide a place to vent about school issues. And discussing specific situations is one thing. However, I see so many blanket statements about non-homeschooling choices, that it seems to be the pot calling the kettle black.
It may be that I just need to skip the "us vs them" threads and stick to the quite helpful curriculum threads. That would be simple enough. But, I wanted to address this issue.
Now that I've made what may be considered an alternative statement on a homeschooling board, I'm prepared for some criticism. (But, of course, as a homeschooler, I used to that sort of thing. ;))