We haven't really had much excitement lately. We are busy, but it is just normal stuff....just work, school, sleep, repeat. The girls aren't playing any sports, we have not started spring 4-H activities yet, the weather, although nice, is making me think about gardening and planting, but I know it is a little too soon. So just life going on around here. We do have some entertainment in the form of a couple of little grandkids though! Evelyn is so excited about starting kindergarten, she reminds me every day that next year she won't be in my office, because she will be in school allllll day! I know she is excited, but for the last 5 years, she has been my constant companion, and I am not ready! The girl is a talker, I am afraid that I will be falling asleep at my desk! :)
GG got them matching shirts. Evie was soooo excited about it!
Today, while we waited on the bus, I told Evie she had to let me take her leap day photos! She did not disappoint! I probably should apologize to the teacher, as she was making plans to tell her teacher they had to leap around at school today!
Last night, Jim and I attended a town hall meeting about the schools. They are beginning talks to either reconfigure the buildings, or my opinion - they want to talk about bond issues. It is like if we pay off a bond we MUST begin all over again. I get that schools need facilities, and that keeping things up and running is important, and I would encourage them to explore all their options. I will say that the school situation makes me mad a lot, and a little bit sad as well. What I know - the teachers are trying as hard as they can, with as much as they can give. They are overworked, underpaid, and underappreciated. What I heard at the meeting....we want to see them do all day preschool instead of half a day, we want them to add on and build new. What I saw - one room being purposefully left empty so that they have a space that angry kids can de-escalate. Computer labs no longer needed since we have all the kids on ipads in their rooms, now turned in to special ed rooms, where they are partitioned off and segmented so that multiple types of services can be offered in one space....and a dizzying amount of stuff piled in every nook, cranny, and corner of each room, as they have so much stuff they are expected to do with these kids. But what are we doing? Why are the schools struggling to educate? I think it is because they are also supposed to be doing literally every single other thing the kids need. They are spending days teaching social - emotional learning, table manners, empathy training, impulse control, anger management, insuring they are fed, making sure they have supplies/food at home, being mandated reporters for abuse, offering all types of therapies for all types of needs, covering medical needs, being in charge of making sure everyone has adequate clothing, and then being forced to go to meetings where they are told by people with no educational degree how to do their jobs, despite them having master's degrees in education....the list just gets longer and longer, and has more and more expectations added to it, and then we all stand around scratching our heads wondering why these kids test scores are low, and why teachers are walking away. Public education right now is hard....and let me be the first one to say this it is NOT due to covid. It is a societal problem. Reality also is that Hope should not be going to these types of meetings because I just get my undies in a wad, say things when I should not, and will probably end up on one of their "lists!" I will say that while I was there, a lady introduced herself. She thanked Jim and I for raising such a great woman, said that Mallory had made such a difference for her son, and that she was so thankful that he had her as his teacher this year. She even got teary eyed telling us how much she appreciates Mallory. I am proud of Mal, the things she endures take some sort of super human power.
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