Distractions

I need to apologize for not posting last week.  I was distracted.  That is my only excuse.  But I was distracted by 2 really good distractions. 

 First, it was show time for the musical presentation that I participated in.  It was amazing!  This musical presentation was both choral and orchestral.  I'd never sung with a full orchestra before.  It brought a depth to the performance that I'd never experienced before.  Everyone performed so well.  It was definitely a heart touching experience.

We also had an wonderful director and producer who worked tirelessly to make this happen.  The most amazing thing was that no one was paid to participate.  Everyone (lighting, orchestra, director, choir....) was a volunteer.  We gave of our time and talents to make this happen.

Another highlight of the last performance was that the composers were there to see it performed for the very first time!  Yup, we were the very first in the world to perform it.  The composers were so nice and fun.  I only hoped we performed it up to their expectations.

My other distraction were some changes that my children's elementary school are proposing to implement next school year.  My husband went to a meeting that explained the changes and then a flyer vaguely outlining what they wanted to happen was sent home to all of the parents.  They weren't minor changes either.  Let me explain.

Our school is the poorest school in our district.  We haven't met the state testing requirements for over 5 years now.  So they have decided in an effort to better focus our children on learning; our children will be required to wear uniforms, have longer school days and the most frustrating part for me, is that they will cut science and fine arts from the curriculum.  Science and fine arts will only be taught if they are part of the lesson dealing with reading or math.  I. Am. Not. Happy.

I'm not a big fan of uniforms but I appreciate how easy it will be for my kids to pick clothes in the morning.  There will be no more, "What should I wear today?"  But......  as I mentioned our school is in a poor area.  Over 90% of our student are on free or discounted lunches.  We have a backpack program that provides a backpack full of food each weekend to those children who wouldn't have any food to eat otherwise.  I don't understand how they expect these parents to buy these uniforms.  A fair amount of these parents rely on hand-me-downs or thrift store to provide clothing for their children.  The school has acknowledged that some parents will need help but I don't think they are being realistic.  They say that if a child comes to school with no uniform, they will provide one for the child to wear for the day.  At the end of the day, the uniform would need to be returned to the office.  The laundry, mending and teasing issues just boggle my mind.  They also say they will help parents buy uniforms for their kids.  How are they going to afford that?  Say you buy only 2 uniforms for only 60% of the school, that still over $2500.   But those uniforms won't last long because kids grow and tend to put holes in the knees. 

Did I mention that they will also require a specified length for the boys hair and the girls bangs?

As for taking science and art out of the classrooms.......  My daughter came home distraught when her teacher told her about this change.  She was so upset that not only were they not going to do art projects but that they would no longer do science.  She LOVES science!  In fact, she's wants to be a marine biologist specializing in sharks.  (I don't know why she chose sharks.  They scare her but she is fascinated.)

I can understand that the school is trying to find a way to meet state testing requirement.  I applaud the effort but taking science and art out of the classroom is not the way to do it.  The fine arts have been proven to not only increase creativity and finding solutions to problems but it has been proven to enhance a child's understanding and learning of any subject from math to reading.  As for science, elementary school is the time where kids are the most curious about there environment and how things work.  It's also the time where a love of science is fostered.  But the clincher of the matter is that our school is the only one in the district not being taught science.  So when these children go to junior high/middle school, they will be so far behind in their understanding and knowledge of science that is taught at that level. 

The worst part is that it feels like the school is being sneaky about this all.  The note sent home to the parents was far from clear and they left out a lot of details.  They also mentioned the new uniform rule first which, in my opinion, was done to take the focus off of no more science and fine arts.  And from everyone I talked to, it worked.  I mentioned the no science thing and every last one of the parents were appalled.  They also only informed the parents less than two weeks before the school board will make a decision on whether to go through with the proposed changes.  They are hoping to keep protests and objections to a minimum.

So, not only have a posted on my facebook page a link to email our school board representative but I have outlined the missing details from the note sent home.  I have given the principal a chance to clarify the matter in an email.  After that, both my husband and I will send an email our school board representative.  I plan on getting as many signatures to a petition protesting these changes as I can.  Then I will attend the school board meeting discussing this issue and presenting the petition at the meeting. 

I do not plan on letting this go.  My children deserve better.

Ella


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