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| There was actually a really cool moon graphic for the other “O”, but I couldn’t get it to show up 🙁 |
Hi guys! Last night was Bug’s Back to School night. For as long as I can remember, Back to school night has been an opportunity for us to go and see what the students have been working on thus far, meet with his teachers, and get a lay of the land before engaging in parent teacher conferences if needed. Even last year that appeared to be the case as we strolled six grade halls looking at work proudly displayed. This year…not so much…
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| Crushing her spaghetti and salad |
Back to School night this year had a program per grade that discussed the Science Fair requirements, discipline and reward strategies and methods, accessing the public school app, and how to help your child excel. The teachers were briefing different sections, so you had to go to a session (even if it wasn’t what you needed), then talk to them about your child. It was definitely different. We ended up missing sessions we really wanted to attend because we really needed to introduce ourselves to teachers since we weren’t able to attend Open House. Fortunately, we were able to visit with all but one of Bug’s teachers and get some valuable information on his behalf.
If you remember my post about the end of Bug’s first year, we learned some pretty valuable information about organization. It looks like we need to revisit those lessons and capitalize on them as well. We also learned that some of the teachers are rightfully frustrated because there are a number of state or county ordered pre-tests that must be completed before actual instruction can begin. The students have been in school since September and some subjects haven’t really had a chance to get into real instruction because they have to teach the kids to pass tests instead. It’s very frustrating to them especially those who really love to teach.
I definitely plan on attending some school board and PTO meetings to see what we can do to assist in getting some of that changed. I don’t think these standardized tests are going to help the kids with the real life situations they will face in the professional and real world. I’d like a teacher to be able to teach. Some of Bug’s best teachers from last year were able to teach the lesson in fun and unique ways and I LOVE them as teachers. Every educator should have that opportunity.
After walking the halls and meeting with Bug’s instructors, we came home and discussed what we’d learned and what could be improved. It was definitely a different kind of Back to School event, but still worth the trip.
Any one have any great organization tips for middle schoolers?
-K
