honest question - what do we do with our kids after May 29?

[Anonymous]

“
Go look up and read about equity, achievement gap & remote learning and get back to me. I am tired of spoon feeding.”

So no one learns?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“
Go look up and read about equity, achievement gap & remote learning and get back to me. I am tired of spoon feeding.”

So no one learns?

Not PP, but they are arguing that those with a socioeconomic background that’s more poor tend to underperform their richer peers. So the gap widens.

It’s an interesting argument because Europe’s actually seen the opposite: it’s more of an equalizer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:“
Go look up and read about equity, achievement gap & remote learning and get back to me. I am tired of spoon feeding.”

So no one learns?

This has nothing to do with equity it's called Coronovirus, it's not like everyone rushing back to work straight away. These are unusual times and calls for unusual measures jeez!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“
Go look up and read about equity, achievement gap & remote learning and get back to me. I am tired of spoon feeding.”

So no one learns?

Not PP, but they are arguing that those with a socioeconomic background that’s more poor tend to underperform their richer peers. So the gap widens.

It’s an interesting argument because Europe’s actually seen the opposite: it’s more of an equalizer.

What has Europe done differently re education then? Or... is it that they're actually providing leave for caretakers to stay home with their kids?! SHOCKER!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I've been very grateful to DCPS for figuring out something to give structure and normalcy to the kids beyond what I could give them myself. You can't be the only adult in their lives. And my introvert would NEVER set up a call on his own - virtual school at least gives him a glimpse of his friends without having to put himself out there. I'm so bummed they're calling it 3 weeks early. Our teachers are also it seems

And not looking forward to doing this all myself while working :/ Scared to explain this to my childless boss.

Same, I don't get the logic DCPS is following it cutting the school year short several weeks early. Who gains? Teachers who crave a longer summer break and less contact with students? Come June, my shy 7 year old is really going to be missing her live class sessions and the chance to see and hear her beloved classroom teacher on weekday mornings. She will then really miss her usual summer camps.. Everyone will survive, but the news about the May 29th ending isn't welcome.

Nobody gains, it's more about preventing further losses and/or managing summer slide. Ask your 7 year old's beloved teacher if she will Zoom with her daily, set up a "tutoring" arrangement to keep you child connected to her former teacher and put some money in the teacher's pocket.

Makes no sense. How are you preventing further loss to her kid by cutting short the school year? You are cutting short her learning, not increasing it. In fact, cutting short all the kids in DCPS from learning.

Go look up and read about equity, achievement gap & remote learning and get back to me. I am tired of spoon feeding.

Seriously. I wrote this above but got buried in quote: Some people really don’t believe in equity. That’s what I am learning. I expect that this (closing early) is not for nothing, they will use the time gained to create better curriculum or start early next year. Why have we said this so many times as has the mayor but no one listens.

Online schooling isn't so you can work from home in another room and help as needed but have the kids out of your hair. It's supposed to be getting education to kids, and when it's not, really, then it's not working. Also, for us, online schooling is NOT babysitting my kids whatsoever, it requires a ton of parent input and support (because kids are smaller), so this is actually making it HARDER to both education (ie, keep up) and WORK. I think that is the case for a lot of families. It's actually harder to be two working parents and have a kid who needs extra help to do any assignments. That also means it's harder for all the at risk kids to keep up. You're basically growing a huge gap in achievement and privileging only the kids whose parents already would be doing tons of supplementing if no school existed. Which, obviously, is the entire readership of DCUM.

[Anonymous]

We found a rental house in a remote area of Virginia that has its own pool. Rental rate was reduced because, well, pandemic, and we can cancel up to a few days before we go. We will pack all of our groceries and everything we need for the two weeks we are going, will not go out into the community for any reason unless it's an emergency, and of course would wear masks and gloves if we did. Our kids can run around outside, swim in the pool, play in the woods and the nearby river, and we can keep working from our temporary home. Thinking about it is the happiest I've felt since all this began.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We found a rental house in a remote area of Virginia that has its own pool. Rental rate was reduced because, well, pandemic, and we can cancel up to a few days before we go. We will pack all of our groceries and everything we need for the two weeks we are going, will not go out into the community for any reason unless it's an emergency, and of course would wear masks and gloves if we did. Our kids can run around outside, swim in the pool, play in the woods and the nearby river, and we can keep working from our temporary home. Thinking about it is the happiest I've felt since all this began.

Thank you for chiming in at the perfect time to validate this thread about the haves, have nots & achievement.

[Anonymous]

So the gap doesn’t widen because no one is learning. What will the schools do in the fall when some kids still don’t have devices and/or support and schools are doing rolling shutdowns? No learning so the gap is maintained?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you are in a household where both parents (or single parent or guardian) work and are required to be working from home, what will you do with your kids after May 29?
We have two elementary school kids. Looking for ideas. Thanks!

Same thing we're doing now: piecing things together the best we can without outside/family help (I'll note that our kids are much younger and not yet in school, so they're pretty dependent upon us for entertainment/structure, which is challenging). What do you do on weekends with your kids when you're not working? Are they old enough to pursue those activities independently? Can you find some online workbooks/home school models to follow to extend their education a few weeks? I've seen some great websites on how to teach younger kids science using fun experiments, often using things we already have around the house (baking soda, markers, paper, vinegar--you get the gist). Perhaps those are an option.

Do you have a yard where your kids can play outside for a bit? Maybe an inflatable pool, water sprinkler, sandbox, inexpensive jungle gym, hula hoops, sidewalk chalk, or other outdoor toys would help them pass away the time. Or a pile of dirt (seriously!). I remember we had one near our house growing up, and I spent hours concocting all sorts of schemes--mini villages made of sticks, leaves, and stones; using it as a bike ramp; etc. Summer is a great time for growing plants, too; maybe they can get a $1 pack of seeds and plant and tend to some veggies or herbs. If you're able to sit outside somewhere and work while watching them, that could help you get some work done during the workweek--and also get some vitamin D.

If you have a voracious reader, consider creating your own at-home book club, with points and rewards (ice cream after dinner? Extra t.v. time?) for achieving their benchmarks. If your kids are artsy, they can also create their own book, with a storyline and pictures, which you can bind with washi tape (or colorful construction paper or fun wrapping paper). I loved making my own books when I was younger! If they're old enough to work with a needle and thread, consider getting them a kids' sewing kit and have them make a fun pillow, sock puppet, or other textile creation. (Or needlepoint! There are some fun/edgy patterns out there.)

I think, if you really consider what your kids enjoy, you'll come up with lots of options. There's no harm in giving them idle time outside of a structured camp setting where they're forced to cure their own boredom; kids need a little breathing room, too. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We found a rental house in a remote area of Virginia that has its own pool. Rental rate was reduced because, well, pandemic, and we can cancel up to a few days before we go. We will pack all of our groceries and everything we need for the two weeks we are going, will not go out into the community for any reason unless it's an emergency, and of course would wear masks and gloves if we did. Our kids can run around outside, swim in the pool, play in the woods and the nearby river, and we can keep working from our temporary home. Thinking about it is the happiest I've felt since all this began.

Thank you for chiming in at the perfect time to validate this thread about the haves, have nots & achievement.

Is that what this thread is about? ::reads original post again::

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We found a rental house in a remote area of Virginia that has its own pool. Rental rate was reduced because, well, pandemic, and we can cancel up to a few days before we go. We will pack all of our groceries and everything we need for the two weeks we are going, will not go out into the community for any reason unless it's an emergency, and of course would wear masks and gloves if we did. Our kids can run around outside, swim in the pool, play in the woods and the nearby river, and we can keep working from our temporary home. Thinking about it is the happiest I've felt since all this began.

Sounds idyllic! I hope you have a wonderful time!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“
Go look up and read about equity, achievement gap & remote learning and get back to me. I am tired of spoon feeding.”

So no one learns?

Not PP, but they are arguing that those with a socioeconomic background that’s more poor tend to underperform their richer peers. So the gap widens.

It’s an interesting argument because Europe’s actually seen the opposite: it’s more of an equalizer.

What has Europe done differently re education then? Or... is it that they're actually providing leave for caretakers to stay home with their kids?! SHOCKER!

We don't live in Europe, they also have free health care and in he UK they are paying folks 80% of salary to STAY AT HOME!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:We found a rental house in a remote area of Virginia that has its own pool. Rental rate was reduced because, well, pandemic, and we can cancel up to a few days before we go. We will pack all of our groceries and everything we need for the two weeks we are going, will not go out into the community for any reason unless it's an emergency, and of course would wear masks and gloves if we did. Our kids can run around outside, swim in the pool, play in the woods and the nearby river, and we can keep working from our temporary home. Thinking about it is the happiest I've felt since all this began.

Thank you for chiming in at the perfect time to validate this thread about the haves, have nots & achievement.

there is a minimum threshold for services so the goal is to get a minimum, the rich will always do more so equal never will happen and is a waste

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:“
Go look up and read about equity, achievement gap & remote learning and get back to me. I am tired of spoon feeding.”

So no one learns?

Not PP, but they are arguing that those with a socioeconomic background that’s more poor tend to underperform their richer peers. So the gap widens.

It’s an interesting argument because Europe’s actually seen the opposite: it’s more of an equalizer.

What has Europe done differently re education then? Or... is it that they're actually providing leave for caretakers to stay home with their kids?! SHOCKER!

Nothing different actually. The studies I’m referring to are older. It’s just they’ve seen a different result. The interesting this is actually that the kids who did experience significant disruption actually ended up statistically outperforming those who didn’t, controlling for income.

Not trying to say Europe is for sure better (although it probably is), just that not all data would support the idea that the gap gets bigger during distance learning.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We found a rental house in a remote area of Virginia that has its own pool. Rental rate was reduced because, well, pandemic, and we can cancel up to a few days before we go. We will pack all of our groceries and everything we need for the two weeks we are going, will not go out into the community for any reason unless it's an emergency, and of course would wear masks and gloves if we did. Our kids can run around outside, swim in the pool, play in the woods and the nearby river, and we can keep working from our temporary home. Thinking about it is the happiest I've felt since all this began.

Omg, please practice water safety!