My hamper floweth over
The Keith Family News
Tuesday, September 04, 2007
Abandoning the three previous posts I started and never finished and starting from scratch
Seriously, three posts that I started but couldn't find the ten minutes I needed to finish them. That has been my month. I am expecting much better things from September. I am pleading with you September, please be gentle with me. I am a woman on the edge.
I'll start with the good news. Jordan is doing fantastic in middle school! She loves it! She is very self motivated with her homework, and loves the English teacher that we heard so many horror stories about. She has the highest test average in his class out of all the sixth graders! Yeah, Jordan!
I am also happy with Ashton's school situation. She has the same teacher she had last year, and I love that teacher! She moved from second to third grade, and kept the whole class with her. Hooray for Ashton!
Max and Lillian have great teachers, too. Love, love, love, Lillian's teacher! She was Pierce's afternoon kindergarten enrichment teacher last year, and she is fantastic. Lillian did, however, hide under the table this morning and kiss her boyfriend. On the lips. Jordan said "Hey! I haven't even kissed a boy on the lips yet!" We are locking her in a tower when she turns twelve.
Now for Pierce. My poor, poor Pierce.
So, while Pierce was recovering from the whole dog attack thing, I kept his spirits up by talking about how great first grade was going to be. How he was going to have his own desk, have reading groups, math sheets (he loves math, didn't get that from me), yada yada yada, things that are pretty universal for all first grade students.
Well, when we went to enroll him, we found out he was in a "split class" with transitional first and first grade students. We were reassured that he would have the same work, they would work with the other first grade classes frequently, etc....
Not so much. They don't have desks, spend most of the day sitting on the carpet, and did a lot of coloring.
We had several meetings with the principal (who is, by the way not my "pal") and were told so many insane things that I can't even begin to write them all down. After six days in that classroom, he was starting to dread going to school. He was bored, and his teacher, lets call her "Mrs. Yellsalot", did just that. A LOT. And I don't care how many years Mrs. Yellsalot has been there (25) or how many people think that boys benefit from her "discipline style" (lots of yelling), I am not one of those people and I never will be. I know I did not complete my degree in early childhood, but I never saw a class entitled "Yelling 101".
Anyway, so after seven days, I went back to our "princi-notmypal" and was told to "trust her", she was going to get things sorted out eventually (wouldn't give me any kind of timeline or any guarantee that my son would be moved to a proper first grade classroom and I was told for the umpteenth time that all the first grade teachers were just doing busy work and if Pierce was ready now for first grade that he would be ready in a few weeks). Even though the other first graders were already learning about north, south, east and west and having spelling tests. So I pulled him.
He stayed home with me for two days, and now she says that he will be moved tomorrow. We'll see. There are two first grade classes and SEVENTY first grade students (which, by the way, has nothing to do with the more than a dozen transfers in the first grade alone) so I know that some other child will be moved into Mrs. Yellsalot's classroom when my son moves out. And don't tell anybody, but I don't frankly care anymore. I need a rest from drama.
So, goodbye August, month of much crap! And hello, September, month of great fortune!
I'll start with the good news. Jordan is doing fantastic in middle school! She loves it! She is very self motivated with her homework, and loves the English teacher that we heard so many horror stories about. She has the highest test average in his class out of all the sixth graders! Yeah, Jordan!
I am also happy with Ashton's school situation. She has the same teacher she had last year, and I love that teacher! She moved from second to third grade, and kept the whole class with her. Hooray for Ashton!
Max and Lillian have great teachers, too. Love, love, love, Lillian's teacher! She was Pierce's afternoon kindergarten enrichment teacher last year, and she is fantastic. Lillian did, however, hide under the table this morning and kiss her boyfriend. On the lips. Jordan said "Hey! I haven't even kissed a boy on the lips yet!" We are locking her in a tower when she turns twelve.
Now for Pierce. My poor, poor Pierce.
So, while Pierce was recovering from the whole dog attack thing, I kept his spirits up by talking about how great first grade was going to be. How he was going to have his own desk, have reading groups, math sheets (he loves math, didn't get that from me), yada yada yada, things that are pretty universal for all first grade students.
Well, when we went to enroll him, we found out he was in a "split class" with transitional first and first grade students. We were reassured that he would have the same work, they would work with the other first grade classes frequently, etc....
Not so much. They don't have desks, spend most of the day sitting on the carpet, and did a lot of coloring.
We had several meetings with the principal (who is, by the way not my "pal") and were told so many insane things that I can't even begin to write them all down. After six days in that classroom, he was starting to dread going to school. He was bored, and his teacher, lets call her "Mrs. Yellsalot", did just that. A LOT. And I don't care how many years Mrs. Yellsalot has been there (25) or how many people think that boys benefit from her "discipline style" (lots of yelling), I am not one of those people and I never will be. I know I did not complete my degree in early childhood, but I never saw a class entitled "Yelling 101".
Anyway, so after seven days, I went back to our "princi-notmypal" and was told to "trust her", she was going to get things sorted out eventually (wouldn't give me any kind of timeline or any guarantee that my son would be moved to a proper first grade classroom and I was told for the umpteenth time that all the first grade teachers were just doing busy work and if Pierce was ready now for first grade that he would be ready in a few weeks). Even though the other first graders were already learning about north, south, east and west and having spelling tests. So I pulled him.
He stayed home with me for two days, and now she says that he will be moved tomorrow. We'll see. There are two first grade classes and SEVENTY first grade students (which, by the way, has nothing to do with the more than a dozen transfers in the first grade alone) so I know that some other child will be moved into Mrs. Yellsalot's classroom when my son moves out. And don't tell anybody, but I don't frankly care anymore. I need a rest from drama.
So, goodbye August, month of much crap! And hello, September, month of great fortune!
Keithclan, 4:06 PM
2 Comments:
Wow, that has to be so completely frustrating. Good for you for pulling him. I hope they follow through and get him into the class where he belongs tomorrow!
So I know this school that has 3 classes of first graders with 14 kids in each class. Pierce knows a couple of the kids, sane principal/director (something I am also relieved about this year), normal voices in the classrooms...
lizzee
lizzee
