Posted on 11/13/2004 4:04:54 PM PST by Marinefamilyx3
To The Editor: I have a daughter in first grade in Henderson County schools. She gets off the bus at 4 p.m., dinner around 5:30, and bath/bed by 8 p.m.
That in itself is a busy enough night. But she has spelling words (writing 10 words five times each), reading a book (first grade, 100 words), nursery rhyme, memorization goals.
Where does family time, playtime, or just sit and stare time go? And then there are families with multiple children in school. And you can forget it if they participate in Scouts, dance, sports. There's just no time!
We spend at least 1.5 to two hours a night on homework. My child is 6 years old! With barely enough patience to sit through an episode of Pokemon.
I can't blame the teachers. Sorry, but I can't. The schools are overloaded, the classrooms at capacity. And then you throw in the language barriers, and various learning disabilities, and the teachers aren't able to do their jobs.
So we're having to do it at home. There has got to be something that can be done within our schools to get this problem under control.
Thank you and your spouse for your work in the trenches. MY kids are reaping the benefits of your hard work.
I don't need to tell you (but I will!) that the parents of kids who need to attend parent/teacher conferences don't. The parents of the kids who don't always show up.
I weary of the homeschooling zealots. I have been flamed many times for my opinions about education. That said, I have a number of friends here on FR who homeschool their children who are NOT zealots.
You and your wife spent a great deal of time and expense to become PS teachers and I applaude you for it. It is teachers like you who make PS a warm memory, as it is for me.
Kudos to you both!
I have had many flame wars with the zealots. There is no talking to them. *sigh* Many of them are quite nice people, but like many, are blinded by their ideology.
It is shocking to me. If you post this is not for everyone and when all is said and done this group will still be a minority you get flamed - do they actually think homeschooling is the wave of the future? I am all for anyone wanting to homeschool. More power to them - but this will never be an option for the vast vast vast majority.
Well you should see the arguments you will get with some who tell you to enroll your kids in pre-pre-pre-pre schools. Blood matches really.
LOL I lived in a quite hoity neighborhood in San Francisco for some time. I know what you mean.
He made it clear to me before I had kids that a public school was not an option for my children. I had highschool teachers (I graduated from a school with 50 other students, not a big, bad school) who knew I would not put my kids through the system.
Thankfully, my PS does believe in discipline and they don't over emphasize the self-esteem thing. They actually conduct annual award ceremonies for all the kids who have achieved good grades, perfect attendance, good conduct, etc.!!!!
Uniforms - I wish!!!!!! I spent 12 years in them - no decisions needed about what to wear!
I generally put out her clothes each night for the morning - but every once in a while, for whatever reason, I miss. You can spot those days a mile away because daddy dresses her.............LOL!!!! It usually takes about 2 weeks before I make the same mistake again!
I try to put out Joey's clothes the night before. I have missed a few times. My biggest faux pas last year was picture day (of course) when I didn't comb his hair and he looked like a total dork when the pictures came home! Goofy grin and bed-head combined!
Me, being a night owl, I have left it up to them to get out to the bus since Bob turned 14 (soon to be 15 in two weeks) and Joey can tie his shoes and zip his coat up unaided. I used to get up at six to fry bacon and eggs and make toast until I learned that they were getting hot breakfast at school. They never ate it anyway and you know I cook. The dogs have slimmed since that bulletin!
Now, I stumble out to plug in the coffee and kiss them good-bye and do last minute damage control with permission slips that were tucked in a pocket I missed or writing checks for field trips.
I believe you. However, please consider that just because YOU have received a mandate from God does not mean that others have received the same marching orders.
And, just food for thought, what would you do if you realized God wanted you to teach in the public school system for the purpose of reaching out to others?
You seem to be reading into our being homeschoolers, I think everyone else should do it.
As a mother who has homeschooled for 20 years: God did not design families with one parent and 30 children, living in a commune of hundreds or thousands. Normal socialization of the human child cannot take place in public school. God's will is not that we be molded by peer-constraint and the Fallen Nature of man. His Will is that the Redeemed Nature of the Believer, as transmitted through the nuclear family, shape growing children. SUPPORT NORMALITY: HOMESCHOOL!!
Mrs. Esopman
"Shocking, indeed! I have tried, as have you here, to have reasonable discussions about education and it has proved impossible. Additionally, they will marshal their forces and do a full-frontal assault because you DARE to disagree with their choice."
I certainly hope you are not referring to me as one of these people described in your post. I will always offer anyone with trouble in PS the idea of homeschooling, I hate to see people feel they have no choices.
I do not, however, push my agenda on people with the notion it is better than anyone else's lifestyle. I think it is better for MY family. I become upset when people say homeschooling is for the affluent, because it labels us as snobs who think we are too good for everyone else, when actually the opposite is true.
If I were truly affluent, I would spend my time with private tutors and the best private schools I could possibly find. Sometimes, I scare myself to death thinking about whether I am doing the right thing. It's something I have to pray about often.
I can say say I enjoy my little form of protest to my state by not allowing them to have almost $21,000 per year if my 3 children were in PS.
I just want you to know I don't think my decisions are better than yours, you do what works for your family and I do the same. But as the original poster asks the question about too much homework, I will always be quick to offer the alternative.
And to the teachers out there. I don't fault you one bit. I fault your system, the NEA, and PTA.
ROFL!!!!!!!
I try very, very hard to make sure I've got everything done for the morning before I got to bed - that way other than tying shoe laces and brushing hair everything is taken care of for hubby and I can stay in bed!!!!
I'm not and have never been a breakfast person - that's hubby's job. Jax eats breakfast at school most mornings and hubby cooks it for the 2 of them on Saturday. He's a smart man, he'll make a double batch of pancake batter and cook them all up and freeze the leftovers - 30 seconds in the microwave and there's breakfast!!!!
In our house Daddy is in charge of mornings - Mommy takes care of the afternoon..........you can imagine just how much I hate when he has to leave early for a job and I'm stuck with both morning and afternoon.
Normal socialization of the human child cannot take place in public school. God's will is not that we be molded by peer-constraint and the Fallen Nature of man. His Will is that the Redeemed Nature of the Believer, as transmitted through the nuclear family, shape growing children. SUPPORT NORMALITY: HOMESCHOOL!!
Sorry to burst your bubble Mrs. esopman - but you are out in left field. Not everyone has or wishes to have your zealotry.
Homeschooling applies to a very small and very affluent segment of the population.
That is just not so. We struggle on one income, doing without a lot of the "necessities" that many families consider priorities so that I can stay at home and homeschool my kids. Is it hard? Yes. But the educational needs of our children are more important than a fancy house or a new car every year or keeping up with the Joneses. And I am not saying that others children aren't important. For us, homeschooling is the necessity because of the learning disabilities of our oldest son.
Neither of our pair (D & D) does breakfast, never have and never will. If we do eat breakfast it is at noon and that's about twice monthly. (Don't buy that Rudy's sausage at Sam's. It sucketh.)
I lay out Joey's clothes the night before, well usually except for that faux pas. Bob is on his own.
There's no diss there with breakfast, but heck, if they get it at school then I ain't gonna fix it if they ain't gonna eat it!
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