My daughter is a freshman at a huge Chicago high school that I won't name, because for the purposes of this series, I think it's no different from any other school. I joined a Facebook group for parents of children in her class. I've been collecting some of their posts and periodically, I will post them without comment (because in most cases, I honestly don't know what my comment would be). —DM
***
When do they turn the heat on at [the school]? … When I got home the first thing my daughter said was that she was shivering in school and couldn't concentrate. And since they're not allowed to wear their coats she too was freezing. When does the heat go on and who can I complain too? We don't need a bunch of sick kids.
Hi. Someone grabbed my son’s green hoodie at basketball conditioning this morning. It has a frayed string. If your son comes home with it please send it back. Thanks!
***
I am wondering why so many tests and quizzes are given on the same day, and if there's anything that can be done about it. … I don't see the need to put the kids under that kind of pressure. … I know it's a large school, and teachers need some flexibility, but if Math tests were given on Mondays, English on Tuesdays, Science on Wednesdays, Social Science on Thursdays, etc. (or whatever schedule they develop), it seems there would be a lot less stress and panic, and our kids could actually get the sleep that they need.
***
My daughter went to school today and said not one teacher discussed the massacre at the Tree of Life synagogue this weekend in Pittsburgh that killed 11 Jews. There hasn't been one post written on this discussion forum either. Why is that? What message are we teaching our children?
***
My daughter is really struggling in a sophomore English class. It appears the culture of the class and the workload is creating a great deal of anxiety. We are discovering that she is not alone in this experience.
At the same time, my daughter has amazing things to say about the way this same teacher is covering the material in great depth and facilitating wonderful class discussions.
I'm reaching out to see if other parents can clarify and corroborate her experience. If so, please PM me, I'm not looking to publicly critique a teacher. They work so hard for our children, and this one clearly has great talent.
***
Both my son and I have sent emails to his counselor to discuss a teacher who doesn't know how to teach (& who thinks "challenginger" is a word; but I digress…). No response. What's our next step?
***
Doing a little poll. How many of your kids have broken their student IDs?
My son’s ID cracked at the top, so there’s no longer a slot/hole for his lanyard to go through. He claims he wasn’t excessively rough with it and that several of his classmates also have broken IDs.
I suggest that the school just fire all the teachers and let the parents take care of everything instead.
David, are you kidding me? These are real?!
@Jackie: No, not kidding.
@Jens: That would cut into their Facebook time.