View Full Version : Community Bins in the Classroom
Belmont31R
08-22-13, 23:14
Had our meet n greet with our kid's teachers today, and find out all of their required school supplies, minus their scissors and pencil box, are not to have the students name written on them. Well too bad we already did because we already knew that was coming. I got a big ole Sharpie a couple weeks ago and put their name on everything.
We don't go out and buy our kids about $75 worth of stuff each so some cheap parent can mooch off what my kids brought. They keep journals so we bought our kids nicer ones with plastic coverings as opposed to the cheap spiral ones with cardboard covers. The cardboard covered ones don't last a school year, and the cheap metal spiral part is easily bent.
I get that crayons and stuff are going to mixed up, and the teacher has better things to do than try to keep that stuff organized by student. Would be impossible anyways. I just don't like that the kids don't have their stuff checked off. I mean someone could cheap out on everything, and then that kid is mooching off everyone else's stuff. Someone is going to come up short.
We are generous with helping the teachers with requested classroom items. We always get double what they ask and pick 2 or 3 things off their list of wants. Im going to be volunteering this year and will be more involved.
But this school supply stuff for the students strikes a nerve with me, and if someone doesn't bring in what they are supposed to they should go without. If a kid doesn't bring in crayons he doesn't use what other people bought for their kids and should get a lower grade for not completing his assignments. I don't want the notebooks we paid a premium for so they last the year going to another kid while mine gets stuck with the cheap one we intentionally didn't buy.
I push a cart down the school supply aisle every year, and for a moment or two during those trips I share your point of view.
Then I think about the homes of some of the kids that sit next to mine. I think about the empty cupboards and fridges they look for food in, the piles of clothes on the floor they dress from, the rotten mattresses they sleep on, and the beer cans and feces some dodge on their way to the bus that helps them escape for awhile.
There are several in each of my kid's classes. I know their names. I've been to their houses.
If letting them draw from a communal pile of school supplies gives them one less thing to worry about, and one less way to stick out, I'm okay with that. Their parent's struggles, inability, or unwillingness to provide something decent for them isn't their problem.
I'm okay with being a bleeding heart on this one. :cool:
Belmont31R
08-22-13, 23:52
That's a respectable opinion to have. A church here was giving out free school supplies. A backpack and most of what was on the supplies list. It's not like the community here is turning their backs on poor kids with less than stellar parents. We live in a good community who isn't going to let a kid go without one way or another. Our grocery chain also donates a lot of stuff.
I just don't want the nicer things I bought my kids going to someone else's kid. I bought that stuff for a reason. We bought more than our fair share of classroom supplies. After our meet n greet I went out and got $50 worth of extra stuff for the teacher after I found out what she was needing.
I push a cart down the school supply aisle every year, and for a moment or two during those trips I share your point of view.
Then I think about the homes of some of the kids that sit next to mine. I think about the empty cupboards and fridges they look for food in, the piles of clothes on the floor they dress from, the rotten mattresses they sleep on, and the beer cans and feces some dodge on their way to the bus that helps them escape for awhile.
There are several in each of my kid's classes. I know their names. I've been to their houses.
If letting them draw from a communal pile of school supplies gives them one less thing to worry about, and one less way to stick out, I'm okay with that. Their parent's struggles, inability, or unwillingness to provide something decent for them isn't their problem.
I'm okay with being a bleeding heart on this one. :cool:
And if you want to decide to provide for those kids, that's an admirable decision but one that shouldn't be made for you.
I'm with Belmont31R on this one.
And sure it isn't the kids fault, the kids of irresponsible people are always the ones who suffer. But that doesn't mean everyone else's kids should have to suffer with them.
Our daughter doesn't start school for another 2yrs., but this is an issue wife and I have discussed. She will be in a private school and she will be our first to attend school(have an infant as well), so we don't know what to expect. Having someone else decide that our purchases are to be shared with others simply will not fly for us. I believe that falls into the socialism-communism area.
We just went through this annual issue here. My take is this, there are needy kids. So just ask for donations that will be given directly to those needy students. The every kid can have their own things and personalize them and have a sense of ownership. Promote the idea of voluntary charity, not mandatory confiscation.
I push a cart down the school supply aisle every year, and for a moment or two during those trips I share your point of view.
Then I think about the homes of some of the kids that sit next to mine. I think about the empty cupboards and fridges they look for food in, the piles of clothes on the floor they dress from, the rotten mattresses they sleep on, and the beer cans and feces some dodge on their way to the bus that helps them escape for awhile.
There are several in each of my kid's classes. I know their names. I've been to their houses.
If letting them draw from a communal pile of school supplies gives them one less thing to worry about, and one less way to stick out, I'm okay with that. Their parent's struggles, inability, or unwillingness to provide something decent for them isn't their problem.
I'm okay with being a bleeding heart on this one. :cool:
Very good to see such decency and sanity. Couldn't possibly agree more.
Belmont isn't this the second thread you've started regarding being upset about children sharing school supplies? The country is getting ready to implode as the rest of the world burns, yet here we are talking about what again?
It's this sort of every man for himself mentality that makes libertarians unpopular. Or wait, now it's every man, woman and child alike because damn it no kid is getting something free from you.
I push a cart down the school supply aisle every year, and for a moment or two during those trips I share your point of view.
Then I think about the homes of some of the kids that sit next to mine. I think about the empty cupboards and fridges they look for food in, the piles of clothes on the floor they dress from, the rotten mattresses they sleep on, and the beer cans and feces some dodge on their way to the bus that helps them escape for awhile.
There are several in each of my kid's classes. I know their names. I've been to their houses.
If letting them draw from a communal pile of school supplies gives them one less thing to worry about, and one less way to stick out, I'm okay with that. Their parent's struggles, inability, or unwillingness to provide something decent for them isn't their problem.
I'm okay with being a bleeding heart on this one. :cool:
Guaran-freaking-tee you an EBT card....paid for by everyone else....has already covered that portion of the picture you paint.
Hey, your $$$. Do with it as you please.
Very good to such decency and sanity. Couldn't possibly agree more.
Belmont isn't this the second thread you've started regarding being upset about children sharing school supplies? The country is getting ready to implode as the rest of the world burns, yet here we are talking about what again?
It's this sort of every man for himself mentality that makes libertarians unpopular. Or wait, now it's every man, woman and child alike because damn it no kid is getting something free from you.
I have an honest question.
What if it was your son? What if you took your hard earned dollars and bought him decent school supplies like the responsible parent you are and then discovered he was forced to use some dollar store crap in school that was of such poor quality that it made it difficult for him to perform the tasks the class is given?
And wouldn't giving your son "the crap school supplies" (because he is from a more wealthy family than some) cause the exact same psychological hardships that they are presumably trying to prevent with the less advantaged kids?
Bottom line is, if you give some kids the "good stuff" and other kids have to use the "junky stuff" kids only see it in terms of self worth. The only question is which kids are we going to treat as "second class."
The only alternative is for every kid to have exactly the same, but then you will have parents of poor families complaining they can't afford that stuff and somebody needs to buy it for them and parents of means will be upset because they will want to give their kids "the best" and it isn't allowed because it might make other kids feel bad.
jklaughrey
08-23-13, 14:07
My wife is an educator and trust me every year she forks over her hard earned money to stock her classroom with necessary and required supplies. The district doesn't reimburse her nor the students/parents. She does it so the kids who brought there own aren't accosted by the ones who go without. The demographic for her JR High is affluent to living out of a motel or car parked at a rest stop. It sucks, and I argue with her that why should our family invest in children who will end up criminals or addicts and hookers. She just smiles and says, "I do it so they have a chance".
I'm with Belmont, my girls both start in next 1 and 2 years and they will not be handing over their stuff to the collective. But I'm sure my wife will donate to said communal store.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2
The_War_Wagon
08-23-13, 14:20
And if you want to decide to provide for those kids, that's an admirable decision but one that shouldn't be made for you.
I'm with Belmont31R on this one.
And sure it isn't the kids fault, the kids of irresponsible people are always the ones who suffer. But that doesn't mean everyone else's kids should have to suffer with them.
It can't be "charity," if it's COMPULSORY. And I pitch in on these school supply drives myself. But what's mine, IS MINE.
Cincinnatus
08-23-13, 14:35
"From each according to his ability, to each according to his need..."
Sounds familiar and it is always wrong, unless done voluntarily. Involuntary charity is theft, not charity.
Teaching Socialism right out of the box. Sorry, I can't buy that. Mark your own stuff, bring extra to go into the community bin for those unable to provide for themselves (charity) is completely different. A shame that some can't see the distinction, but it's a HUGE one...
Belmont31R
08-23-13, 14:44
Very good to such decency and sanity. Couldn't possibly agree more.
Belmont isn't this the second thread you've started regarding being upset about children sharing school supplies? The country is getting ready to implode as the rest of the world burns, yet here we are talking about what again?
It's this sort of every man for himself mentality that makes libertarians unpopular. Or wait, now it's every man, woman and child alike because damn it no kid is getting something free from you.
I already said our community donates a lot of stuff. A church here was giving out free backpacks and supplies to anyone who walked up.
I just don't want my kids stuff taken and go without or have to use the crappy stuff someone else gave their kid.
There's a big difference between being charitable, and having your stuff taken to be given to someone else. If that makes an ideology unpopular...then so be it.
Might have mentioned this topic before. It's becoming more and more popular in schools and talking about it raises awareness.
GeorgiaBoy
08-23-13, 15:20
I'm college and I use the cheap spiral notebooks with the easy-to-bend metal and cheap mechanical pencils. :jester:
But I do buy Avery 3-ring binders because the cheap ones suck...
I have an honest question.
What if it was your son? What if you took your hard earned dollars and bought him decent school supplies like the responsible parent you are and then discovered he was forced to use some dollar store crap in school that was of such poor quality that it made it difficult for him to perform the tasks the class is given?
Never heard of such a scenario and not sure if you understand how this type of thing usually works. You buy items for your child and they keep everything for themselves except for certain items that may have potential for common use. It's not like everybody buys for their kids, the kids throw everything in a big box and then the kids take everything back out of the box randomly. Obviously that would be essentially pointless.
Shared items often tend to be things like extra pencils, hand sanitizer, tissue boxes or paper folders.
Belmont31R
08-23-13, 15:35
I really don't see it as any different than if they took your kids lunch and have it to another kid. Or you buy your kid a nice bike to ride to school and he comes back with another one that's a piece of crap. Theft is theft and the school has no right to redistribute my kids stuff out or take my kids stuff to give to another student leaving them short on their supplies.
This is teaching kids bad habits and its ok if someone takes their belongings to give to someone else. Maybe this is a symptom of why this country is as messed up as it is because kids are learning early on authority figures can take their property and give it to someone else. Kids are being taught its ok to show up without what you are supposed to and someone will just give you what you don't have. This is a microcosm of larger societies problems with wealth redistribution and leeching off others that they're teaching to 7 year olds as acceptable.
Alaskapopo
08-23-13, 15:42
I push a cart down the school supply aisle every year, and for a moment or two during those trips I share your point of view.
Then I think about the homes of some of the kids that sit next to mine. I think about the empty cupboards and fridges they look for food in, the piles of clothes on the floor they dress from, the rotten mattresses they sleep on, and the beer cans and feces some dodge on their way to the bus that helps them escape for awhile.
There are several in each of my kid's classes. I know their names. I've been to their houses.
If letting them draw from a communal pile of school supplies gives them one less thing to worry about, and one less way to stick out, I'm okay with that. Their parent's struggles, inability, or unwillingness to provide something decent for them isn't their problem.
I'm okay with being a bleeding heart on this one. :cool:
This post is how we should all be.
Pat
This is teaching kids bad habits and its ok if someone takes their belongings to give to someone else.
Normally it's called sharing, a positive action in the eyes of most. And as I stated above many of the items will likely stay with them all year anyway, as usually only some are used by the whole.
Either way your child will always have what they need and to me worrying about the quality of the paper scissors my son may use during the day at school is inconceivable.
If there was a problem I'd address it as needed. No problem, no concern.
This post is how we should all be.
Pat
We don't have to be; the government is doing it for us.
Alaskapopo
08-23-13, 16:04
We don't have to be; the government is doing it for us.
Well if we funded our schools enough this would not even be an issue.
Pat
Belmont31R
08-23-13, 16:43
Sharing is voluntary. Taking something from a kid is theft.
The way the bins were setup there would be no way to know who dropped stuff or not. Without a name its likely your kid would not be using the stuff the parent bought. There's no way to know if someone dropped anything off at all.
These are for things like homework folders that go home everyday, reading logs, journals, practice writing, ect. It's not just crayons, which I already said are going to get mixed up anyways.
I think the values being taught in schools are important. Then people claim younger generations are entitled. Gee I wonder why. Ymmv.
Belmont31R
08-23-13, 16:44
Well if we funded our schools enough this would not even be an issue.
Pat
Our school district has spent 75 million on just three football stadiums. I'd say they are spending too much with a lack of priorities.
Alaskapopo
08-23-13, 16:45
Our school district has spent 75 million on just three football stadiums. I'd say they are spending too much with a lack of priorities.
That does show a lack of priorities. Like to see that money put into school supplies and teachers salaries.
Pat
Hunter Rose
08-23-13, 17:13
Well if we funded our schools enough this would not even be an issue.
Pat
This is wrong. The United States spends more per child per capita than any other country in the world. Our schools do not suck from a lack of funds, they suck from a lack of choice, accountability, and competition.
Failure2Stop
08-23-13, 17:19
This is wrong. The United States spends more per child per capita than any other country in the world.
That is very interesting.
Source?
Alaskapopo
08-23-13, 17:24
This is wrong. The United States spends more per child per capita than any other country in the world. Our schools do not suck from a lack of funds, they suck from a lack of choice, accountability, and competition.
Yea source? In many countries they pay for education all the way through college. So I am having a hard time accepting what you just said. Plus there is plenty of competition from private and religious schools as well.
Pat
GeorgiaBoy
08-23-13, 17:28
This is wrong. The United States spends more per child per capita than any other country in the world. Our schools do not suck from a lack of funds, they suck from a lack of choice, accountability, and competition.
That is only true when you include private spending.
Never heard of such a scenario and not sure if you understand how this type of thing usually works. You buy items for your child and they keep everything for themselves except for certain items that may have potential for common use. It's not like everybody buys for their kids, the kids throw everything in a big box and then the kids take everything back out of the box randomly. Obviously that would be essentially pointless.
Shared items often tend to be things like extra pencils, hand sanitizer, tissue boxes or paper folders.
Well I've actually seen things down here where virtually every school supply is turned in on the first day and then "randomly" redistributed.
But even in your scenario, why should I be buying extra pencils, hand sanitizer, tissue boxes or paper folders for other kids? I understand why I would buy them for my kid, but there is zero reason for me to buy them for anyone else especially in light of the fact that my property taxes already pay for public education.
That is only true when you include private spending.
Actually we had a thread here very recently that showed the public school system spends more money per kid than private schools.
montanadave
08-23-13, 19:10
My wife and I don't have kids but have been generous in supporting back-to-school supply programs, Christmas gift exchanges, providing hygiene kits for kids, and donating to my old elementary school's library.
I kind of get a kick out of it because I get to buy all the cool stuff I would have wanted when I was a kid. :D
I kind of get a kick out of it because I get to buy all the cool stuff I would have wanted when I was a kid. :D
They still sell metal Hop Along Cassidy lunchboxes? :p
Sent via Tapatalk
montanadave
08-23-13, 19:38
They still sell metal Hop Along Cassidy lunchboxes? :p
Sent via Tapatalk
No, but my mom still has my Yogi Bear and BooBoo lunchbox . . . with matching thermos. :p
Our school district has spent 75 million on just three football stadiums. I'd say they are spending too much with a lack of priorities.
What sort of school district needs to utilize three "stadiums" at an average of $25,000,000 each? Would like to see you provide verification of this because it sounds incorrect with regard to a public system. Not saying you're making it up, just can't believe it.
And honestly I'd take a guy like you and your family as neighbors over 99% of the people I know. Hopefully, especially considering our past private dealings you understand that to an extent. By all accounts I believe you to be as upstanding and decent as they come anywhere.
But along with that comes my utter confusion as to why a guy like you would be so upset over small children sharing some of their school supplies. Know everyone doesn't have to think like me but still I'm perplexed.
Belmont31R
08-23-13, 22:29
What sort of school district needs to utilize three "stadiums" at an average of $25,000,000 each? Would like to see you provide verification of this because it sounds incorrect with regard to a public system. Not saying you're making it up, just can't believe it.
And honestly I'd take a guy like you and your family as neighbors over 99% of the people I know. Hopefully, especially considering our past private dealings you understand that to an extent. By all accounts I believe you to be as upstanding and decent as they come anywhere.
But along with that comes my utter confusion as to why a guy like you would be so upset over small children sharing some of their school supplies. Know everyone doesn't have to think like me but still I'm perplexed.
This says about 20 million. What I read before was about 24-25. Keep in mind they were paid with bonds which accrue interest.
http://m.hillcountrynews.com/mobile/sports/article_e99362ac-b06e-11df-9357-001cc4c002e0.html
http://impactnews.com/austin-metro/leander-cedar-park/leander-isd-set-to-open-new-regional-stadium/
http://lunalonestar.wordpress.com/2012/12/12/john-gupton-stadium/
There's 2 more like this in this ISD.
This one was 'just' a renovation at over $12 million plus the original construction costs.
http://www.fieldsarchitects.com/projects/detail/ac-bible-memorial-stadium
The 3rd one.
http://www.fieldsarchitects.com/projects/detail/monroe-stadium
Belmont31R
08-23-13, 22:37
I don't mind giving back to the classroom. As I said, after our meet n greet with the teachers I went out and got a bunch of stuff the teachers were asking for. Things for the kids to do crafts, hand sanitizer, and other items. All the kids in the class will be using that stuff.
I just don't want the supplies I specifically bought for my kids to use on a day to day basis being given to another kid while mine get lower quality stuff I went out of my way to avoid. Markers, crayons, pencils, ect. Don't care about that stuff. It's going to get used up and mixed in when you're dealing with 20 seven year olds.
Alaskapopo
08-23-13, 22:39
This says about 20 million. What I read before was about 24-25. Keep in mind they were paid with bonds which accrue interest.
http://m.hillcountrynews.com/mobile/sports/article_e99362ac-b06e-11df-9357-001cc4c002e0.html
http://impactnews.com/austin-metro/leander-cedar-park/leander-isd-set-to-open-new-regional-stadium/
http://lunalonestar.wordpress.com/2012/12/12/john-gupton-stadium/
There's 2 more like this in this ISD.
This one was 'just' a renovation at over $12 million plus the original construction costs.
http://www.fieldsarchitects.com/projects/detail/ac-bible-memorial-stadium
The 3rd one.
http://www.fieldsarchitects.com/projects/detail/monroe-stadium
Just a question as we don't have stadiums like that up here. Do these stadiums take in any money from ticket sales or concessions to help pay for their costs?
Pat
Belmont31R
08-23-13, 22:49
Just a question as we don't have stadiums like that up here. Do these stadiums take in any money from ticket sales or concessions to help pay for their costs?
Pat
Yeah. Just on ticket sales it would take 250 sold out games at $10 a person. I think the student rate is lower. They play about 8 varsity games a year. Plus there are maintenance and utilities costs.
Just on the cost to build it would take 31 years to repay selling out every game at the full ticket price.
Straight Shooter
08-23-13, 23:09
Ill chime in and say this. One, of MANY reasons, I detest professional sports..ALL of them, is the crap I witnessed when I was in school. ALL they worried/talked/cared about was the football team, period. They passed on clowns, that today I know cant read, and are of course mooching of my tax money. Had they put HALF the effort and money into the school/students/teachers themselves, it woulda done a world of good. As for the supply issue...I do not have kids, but if I did the stuff I buy would all have their names on it, and there would be hell raised should another child take it, or have it given to them. I "donate" money twice a month to schools,
free lunches, free this & that. DAMN if Id let them take my childs supplies. And yes, I do feel giving extra, is a good thing...VOLUNTARILY.
GeorgiaBoy
08-23-13, 23:39
Ill chime in and say this. One, of MANY reasons, I detest professional sports..ALL of them, is the crap I witnessed when I was in school. ALL they worried/talked/cared about was the football team, period. They passed on clowns, that today I know cant read, and are of course mooching of my tax money. Had they put HALF the effort and money into the school/students/teachers themselves, it woulda done a world of good. As for the supply issue...I do not have kids, but if I did the stuff I buy would all have their names on it, and there would be hell raised should another child take it, or have it given to them. I "donate" money twice a month to schools,
free lunches, free this & that. DAMN if Id let them take my childs supplies. And yes, I do feel giving extra, is a good thing...VOLUNTARILY.
You didn't play sports in HS?
Damn man, you missed out on some goooood times.
I wish I would have played more than I did.
We were real commies in football. One person messed up, everybody punished. Communal water bottles. The elitist seniors. :laugh:
montanadave
08-24-13, 06:49
I did not play HS sports, either. However, I was actively involved in the organization of after game festivities, primarily the procurement of kegs of beer and sufficient pallets for the bonfire.
We all played our parts and, while mine was not on the field, I feel it was every bit as important in sustaining school spirit. And our post-game activities were entirely funded through private donations. :D
They still sell metal Hop Along Cassidy lunchboxes? :p
Hey, joke if you want, but this is seriouis stuff! I have my pristine Hopalong (1 word, not 2) Cassidy mug displayed proudly on a nic nack shelf in my house.
Hey, joke if you want, but this is seriouis stuff! I have my pristine Hopalong (1 word, not 2) Cassidy mug displayed proudly on a nic nack shelf in my house.
Sorry, my bad. Hopalong was a bit before my time. My prize possessions was a Dukes of Hazzard lunchbox/thermos & a TrapperKeeper.
...and it's knickknack or nicknack (1 word, not 2). :p
Sent via Tapatalk
MountainRaven
08-24-13, 10:48
This is wrong. The United States spends more per child per capita than any other country in the world. Our schools do not suck from a lack of funds, they suck from a lack of choice, accountability, and competition.
I know you've already been called out on this, but...
I find it difficult to imagine that there is more choice or competition in schooling for children in, say, Finland (everybody goes to a public school - everybody) or Japan (where the curriculum for every student is set by the central (see: Federal) government, not the prefectural (see: state) governments) than in the US.
Belmont31R
08-24-13, 11:38
I know you've already been called out on this, but...
I find it difficult to imagine that there is more choice or competition in schooling for children in, say, Finland (everybody goes to a public school - everybody) or Japan (where the curriculum for every student is set by the central (see: Federal) government, not the prefectural (see: state) governments) than in the US.
The Feds are trying to entice the states into 'Common Core'. Look it up. DOE is heavily involved in K-12 education.
From what I know about some of the European school systems they are pretty good. I came >< within going to a gunsmithing school in Ferlach, Austria. I was accepted and ended up joining the mil instead. They have tracks for kids either wanting to go to college or kids wanting to learn a trade. They graduate HS there ready to either go to higher education or with a marketable skill. The trade HS is less academically focused, and in the case of the school I was accepted into was about half and half. At the end of the 4 years you'd be expected to build a working rifle from scratch, and this was more or less a public school.
I have a friend in Germany who was an exchange student at my high school. She was on the academic track to go to college. They made her take an extra year of school in Germany because they didn't count her year in the US.
Overall based on what I've seen and been told 1st hand their education system is much more focused on accomplishing a goal be it higher education or learning a trade. US high schools are much less focused and beneficial to doing 'something'. You can chill out and not have much to show for your 4 years besides a diploma.
I'd have a talk with the principal or school board or whatever they're called about having a car wash or something that the kids and the parents can both be involved to try to raise extra money for these kids.
1. It teaches the kids to help out those in need.
2. The kids in need get what they need.
3 and for the win. It DOESN'T teach this generation socialism/communism.
Had our meet n greet with our kid's teachers today, and find out all of their required school supplies, minus their scissors and pencil box, are not to have the students name written on them. Well too bad we already did because we already knew that was coming. I got a big ole Sharpie a couple weeks ago and put their name on everything.
We don't go out and buy our kids about $75 worth of stuff each so some cheap parent can mooch off what my kids brought. They keep journals so we bought our kids nicer ones with plastic coverings as opposed to the cheap spiral ones with cardboard covers. The cardboard covered ones don't last a school year, and the cheap metal spiral part is easily bent.
I get that crayons and stuff are going to mixed up, and the teacher has better things to do than try to keep that stuff organized by student. Would be impossible anyways. I just don't like that the kids don't have their stuff checked off. I mean someone could cheap out on everything, and then that kid is mooching off everyone else's stuff. Someone is going to come up short.
We are generous with helping the teachers with requested classroom items. We always get double what they ask and pick 2 or 3 things off their list of wants. Im going to be volunteering this year and will be more involved.
But this school supply stuff for the students strikes a nerve with me, and if someone doesn't bring in what they are supposed to they should go without. If a kid doesn't bring in crayons he doesn't use what other people bought for their kids and should get a lower grade for not completing his assignments. I don't want the notebooks we paid a premium for so they last the year going to another kid while mine gets stuck with the cheap one we intentionally didn't buy.
It's like heading off to a carbine class with your Colt mounted with an Aimpoint and a box full of Federal Ammo and ending up shooting someone else's Oly with a Vortex red dot using Tula ammo.
Once, I got a call from the school to tell me I owed them money for school lunches. My sons found out if they were too lazy to pack their lunches in the morning, the school would give them food from the cafeteria so they would not have to go hungry. I told the school I wouldn't pay because they did so without my consent and that it undermined the lesson of consequences of not taking care of themselves. They argued with me, telling me a kid can't concentrate in class if hungry but I told them they are making a contract with a minor and good luck collecting. They finally stopped giving my sons free lunches. But I really blew my stack when I found out one son started mooching off other kids instead! Boy, did I let him have it!
Five_Point_Five_Six
08-24-13, 13:11
I push a cart down the school supply aisle every year, and for a moment or two during those trips I share your point of view.
Then I think about the homes of some of the kids that sit next to mine. I think about the empty cupboards and fridges they look for food in, the piles of clothes on the floor they dress from, the rotten mattresses they sleep on, and the beer cans and feces some dodge on their way to the bus that helps them escape for awhile.
There are several in each of my kid's classes. I know their names. I've been to their houses.
If letting them draw from a communal pile of school supplies gives them one less thing to worry about, and one less way to stick out, I'm okay with that. Their parent's struggles, inability, or unwillingness to provide something decent for them isn't their problem.
I'm okay with being a bleeding heart on this one. :cool:
Thumbs up! We donate a lot more school supplies than is asked of us for the very reasons skintop listed above. My church also does a back to school drive where we give out backpacks filled with school supplies. We see the kids at school, they come to our church on our church bus that picks them up for sunday school, we see the parents and the environment that the kids grow up in.
I will never excuse bad parenting, but I've never been able to hold a kid responsible for the actions or lack thereof of their dirtbag parents.
It's like heading off to a carbine class with your Colt mounted with an Aimpoint and a box full of Federal Ammo and ending up shooting someone else's Oly with a Vortex red dot using Tula ammo.
I had to read this twice to make sure it was real before nearly laughing my ass off. But this is a gun forum so...
:D
I can't speak for elementary schools, but in my high school the "good" school supplies affluent parents buy their kids get stuffed in lockers only to be thrown out by custodians at the end of the year.
I give more pens/pencils/paper to kids whose parents have money than to those whose parents are broke.
This post is how we should all be.
Pat
No thanks, I'd prefer everyone can make up their own mind as to how they wish to outfit their children and whether or not they wish to donate additional items to a community supply. Charity not mandate, please.
I can't speak for elementary schools, but in my high school the "good" school supplies affluent parents buy their kids get stuffed in lockers only to be thrown out by custodians at the end of the year.
I give more pens/pencils/paper to kids whose parents have money than to those whose parents are broke.
If you don't want to, you should stop. That's kind of the entire point, parents take care of THEIR kids and YOU don't owe them anything. Your responsibility is provide supplies to YOUR kids if you have any.
Now if you "choose" to give kids (rich or poor) free supplies, that is YOUR business.
All I know is if I tried that bullshit when I was a kid, I'd get sent home with a note explaining that I'm not coming to school prepared for class and would probably catch a day or two of detention as a result. Seemed to work pretty well back then.
When I got my classroom a few weeks back, it was stocked with stuff! pencils, pens, leftover binders with loose leaf paper...I keep extra boxes of sharpened pencils for scantron test days and print out my powerpoints into slide/worksheet format.
I keep small things in the class like granola bars and contact lens solution. They have a 28 minute lunch, so if they dont get enough to eat or have to do other crap at lunch, there is at least something to eat. My class is 16 and 17 year old kids, they are a pretty good group, I have a twitter account for the class and encourage them to ask questions, even if its off topic. The class is just over 100 minutes and I try to give them a five minute break in the middle of class as the desk/chair combo is horribly uncomfortable! I typically get 3-4 kids who take the oppurtunity to use the john and let the class know that after a particular students goes to the bathroom, we will begin when that kid gets back.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.