I was looking at the calendar this morning and realized that Chloe goes back to school the Thursday after we get back from vacation. We leave in about 2 weeks, we'll be gone for two weeks and then she's back to school that Thursday. Conflicting emotions abound. I've loved the schedule this year but we went on vacation a lot earlier last year. So I think I need a pro/con list.
Pros
1.Getting up at a ridiculously early hour (for the Buttons) was rough but we got through it.
2.The school was tougher academically than her last school and was good for her.
3. The parents of this school are *really* involved.
4. The overall quality of everything was a notch above her last school (which was also very highly rated).
5. Keeping Chloe in the same school is good for her because change is difficult.
Cons
1. Getting up early affected week night things like Life Group. And life in general.
2. During most of the year she had more than an hour of homework every night even though her teacher said they would have no more than 20 minutes of homework a night plus reading. I don't know of a kid that can rainbow write (every letter of every word has to be in a different color) all 20 spelling words in 20 minutes, plus math homework, plus grammar homework.
3. Her teacher was a nice person but I didn't like her attitude toward Chloe, academically speaking. Apparently Chloe's artsy-ness bothered her so when I recieved communication from her it was typically negative. Which affected Chloe's report card. How? Because grades around here are subjective. It just makes me too angry so I need to stop.
Sigh. I haven't been completely happy with any school that any of my kids have gone to. Well, Beech High School was a good school for Amanda. I was happy with that but we moved. It's difficult for Travis and I because we were both teacher's pets. Our teachers constantly heaped praise and attention on us so to have teachers that are indifferent or negative towards my kids is really hard. I guess we were spoiled. I grew up in private school and he did too until the 4th grade, I think. Home schooling is out of the question. I'm not physically able to take that on (I've been sick since the day Chloe got out of school) and we're not financially prepared for it either. So, we'll do what we always do. We'll pray about it and figure it out. Ultimately God knows what Chloe needs better than I do. I mean, it's really a miracle that she got into this school anyway. There are plenty of kids that apply year after year and don't get in. I'm really just not ready for her to be in school again. Of course, I'll be rejoicing when she gets that 3 week break in October, right?
6 comments:
Argh! School is really difficult. I think public schools have the right motivation most of the time but their motives lead them to wrong conclusions and end up eroding into family life more and more. It's frustrating.
On the bright side...this impending move to Florida may be a happy ending to the school drama, whenever that may be. I hate even saying that because I feel like I'm supporting this horrible idea you guys have gotten into your heads.
Ha! Well at least you're not looking forward to us moving. The bright side is that you guys visit Lakeland a couple times a year, right?
An hour of homework a night? Subjective grading? Aaaak! No wonder you're conflicted! You have every right to speak up for the emotional well-being of your kids too. I know you know that, but it's still worth sayin'.
I've never heard of rainbow writing - did Chloe think that up herself? :) She's gonna be a famous artist one day!
Pros and cons abound in most options. Rarely is there a "perfect". And, of course, sitting on one side causes the other side to look a bit rosier than where you're at. How does Chloe feel about PG vs. Fr. ?
Ms. Tee- thanks for thinking it was Chloe but it's a school thing. I think it's to make the kids focus on each letter but it's very tedious and time consuming. Believe it or not Chloe hates rainbow writing.
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