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Family Matters:  school supply list  |
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knittingmom
True Blue Farmgirl
665 Posts
AnneMarie
Edmonton
Alberta
Canada
665 Posts |
 Posted - Aug 07 2014 : 6:31:39 PM
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My son's gr. 6 supply list is very heavy on the art supply end and there was a, shall I say, disclaimer as to why on the top of the list. Something to the effect of 21st century learning embraces technology and visual journals.....hmmm. The kids go to a "regular" school not a charter school.
I am kind of wondering where they're going with that one. How about making sure kids can actually write clearly for one? I think most kids now have a lot of technology exposure.
I see why more and more parents are homeschooling.
Farmgirl Sister #3759
"There is no foot so small that it cannot leave an imprint on this world"
"The things that matter most are not really things after all" |
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Simply Satisfied
True Blue Farmgirl
427 Posts
Emily
Montana
USA
427 Posts |
Posted - Aug 07 2014 : 8:32:07 PM
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I am with you. We were told our daughter's may not learn cursive writing because it isn't really deemed necessary and by third grade they will be expected to type a page on the computer. In order to learn typing they have to get rid of cursive to make sure they have the time to learn typing. My husband and I wonder how the kids will sign their names or read the constitution and other important documents. I feel that I heavily supplement my kids education at home with both religion and regular school topics to make sure they understand when they get to it in school. It is easier as my kids are 4 and 7 years old but I hope to continue to give them extra at home to help. I can't convince my husband that homeschooling is a good idea and we do have a pretty good school district but we are always watching for gaps.
Emily
Farmgirl # 3591 |
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knittingmom
True Blue Farmgirl
665 Posts
AnneMarie
Edmonton
Alberta
Canada
665 Posts |
Posted - Aug 08 2014 : 06:14:17 AM
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I agree with you too, using the excuse that kids type anyway so handwriting is out is just lazy reasoning, and you're right about being able to sign your name and be able to read cursive writing.
I'm pretty sure this year it will be more schooling after schooling to teach what the school missed. But really if they're not teaching all of the basics what are they teaching? We had frustration with "new math" last year. When I showed the kids "old math" (how I was taught in elementary school some 24-25 years ago) they understood the concept quickly.
I think schools are sometimes way out there when really basis of learning is keep it simple to begin with, lots of repetition and practice until the concept is learned and then move on to the next level.
Farmgirl Sister #3759
"There is no foot so small that it cannot leave an imprint on this world"
"The things that matter most are not really things after all" |
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churunga
True Blue Farmgirl
3919 Posts
Marie
Minneapolis
MN
USA
3919 Posts |
Posted - Aug 08 2014 : 09:30:26 AM
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I see that in so many schools they want the children to succeed at the expense of learning a lesson by failing. I volunteer at a grade school and I encourage kids to try things even if I know that the result will be a failure so that they can learn from it. I always ask the kids what they have learned from the experience. In most cases, the kids that did not have a success learned more than those that did. Public schools are so pressed for time that they cannot afford the "wasted" time it takes to learn from failure. We have a place called Leonardo's Workshop which encourages kids to try things even if they do not work out in order to learn from it. I like that idea. I too am dismayed by the lack of instruction in penmanship. Many of the kids in my school actually want to learn it.
Marie, Sister #5142
Farmgirl of the Month May 2014
Try everything once and the fun things twice. |
Edited by - churunga on Aug 08 2014 09:31:48 AM |
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AmethystRose
True Blue Farmgirl
254 Posts
Rosemary
Huntingdon
PA
USA
254 Posts |
Posted - Aug 08 2014 : 10:30:03 AM
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I am seeing the lack of cursive knowledge already in genealogy. Some names on old handwritten censuses are transcribed badly. Daniel can be read as David or Samuel, and the alternate "r" and "t" forms are unknown. |
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Simply Satisfied
True Blue Farmgirl
427 Posts
Emily
Montana
USA
427 Posts |
Posted - Aug 08 2014 : 8:40:24 PM
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I agree with the math Annemarie. Just in first grade I was already helping my daughter add in columns instead of the new way. When she finally got what I was saying she looked up and said, " Mom this is so easy, is it cheating?" I couldn't believe that they are spending all this time learning it a new way and out of the students mouth comes, yup the old way works great. Luckily I haven't met any resistance with her being allowed to do it the "old" way as long as she can do it the new way too. We have also been learning cursive this summer so at least she knows it. Between us and school hopefully our kids will be ready for life.
Emily
Farmgirl # 3591 |
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texdane
Farmgirl Legend Chapter Leader Chapter Guru
4658 Posts
Nicole
Sandy Hook
CT
USA
4658 Posts |
Posted - Aug 10 2014 : 11:41:31 AM
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My daughter has always gone to public school here. Taxes have quadrupled in my area since I moved here! Our school supply list is always long, and usually runs us about $100, for one child. The attitude is very nonchalant about making parents spend so much. And supply lists are now given a week before school starts, which means sales are over and things are picked over. In elementary, we had the option of online order. It was early in the summer, but when your child came in the first day, they had the right stuff. And then there's class dues, extras like calculators and books that teachers want you to buy, school spirit items and class trips. The class trips kill me! Last year, sixth grade was $75! I don't know how parents with large families keep up!
My friends that are teachers also spend their own money for their classrooms, too. As far as penmanship, they taught writing one way, then the "guidelines" were changed and they said it was wrong. The way they do math now makes no sense to me, and it's no longer getting the correct answer. Students get points off if they don't get TO the right answer correctly in our school. And please don't get me started on the health class they taught in fifth and sixth grades. Ugh.
I would have homeschooled if my daughter wasn't an only child. However, I know we are blessed as she has had some wonderful teachers, and elementary years were joyous. Still, I think it's a bit much sometimes how they push kids and the expenses are a lot.
The "old days" WERE simpler, I guess...
Farmgirl hugs,
Nicole
Farmgirl Sister #1155
KNITTER, JAM-MAKER AND MOM EXTRAORDINAIRE
Chapter Leader, Connecticut Simpler Life Sisters
Farmgirl of the Month, January 2013
Suburban Farmgirl Blogger
http://sfgblog.maryjanesfarm.org/ |
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rksmith
True Blue Farmgirl
858 Posts
Rachel
Clayton
GA
USA
858 Posts |
Posted - Aug 11 2014 : 5:43:37 PM
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The more I hear about the school systems the more I am so happy that we homeschool. When my son gripes about something I point out to him that he could be doing xyz at a public (or private) school. He does do the bulk of his school work online, but I do have him practice calligraphy so that he can write legibly; he either makes up stories of his own or he transcribes passages from some philosophy books of mine (hopefully some of that is sinking in!!). His hand writing isn't as good as I would like for it to be, but he can at least write. I don't see the point of sending a child to school and them schooling them at home to catch what is missed at school--that seems like an overload on the child to me but I understand that you do what you have to. I think that schools now put too much emphasis on the wrong things. One of the last times that my son was in public school the teacher and I got into an argument about his math. He didn't understand what she expected him to do and I had no clue what she was talking about. I showed him how to do the problems the way I was taught and he got the right answers every time but she kept failing him because he worked the problem differently than she told him to, but couldn't explain it to him (or me) in a way that was understandable to either of us. The final straw was when she said that he was too individual and needed to be more like everyone else, even though he was never a problem at school and was (still is) a really good kid. I told her what I thought about that comment and withdrew him the same day and he's never been back in public school since.
Rachel
Farmgirl Sister #2753
True enlightenment is nothing but the nature of one's own self being fully realised-- His Holiness the Dali Lama
www.madameapothecary.com |
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Family Matters: school supply list |
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school supply list
