Opting out of home visits

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am the PP who said we never did them. We didn't do it because they are "institutional employees" or because we don't live IB. We did it because that is what was easiest for our family and our children. The school provided an option, home vitit or in school visit -- we chose in school since I wanted my children to see their classroom prior to going to school.

This sounds like a perfectly reasonable option for people who are uncomfortable for whatever reason at home. So long as there are no other classroom students or parents competing for teachers' attention. No sitting in little chairs with lines of other parents waiting outside the classroom door. You and your child deserve some of the teachers' undivided attention.

"Home Visit" is a misleading name. It sounds too much like social services. In reality, personal visits are pretty wide spread across the US and standard practice in some countries like Japan and the UK.

It doesn't really matter where visits happen. Plenty of divorced parents hold a joint meeting at a neutral location. Like lots of things in education, success depends on the teacher's execution and the principal's leadership. You might want to ask other parents at your school about their experiences directly before opting out.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/montgomery-principal-builds-relationships-with-students-parents-by-home-visits/2012/08/14/30975256-e62a-11e1-8741-940e3f6dbf48_story.html

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:An "institutional employee"? That's how you think of the person who is responsible for a large part of your child's education and development for the next nine months?

My daughter ADORES her teachers, and I am thrilled. SHE will be thrilled to show them her favorite toys and introduce them to the cat. Whatever they think is appropriate for their pedagogy is fine by me.

You sound like an unspeakable snob, and I hope you don't let on to the teachers that you think them so beneath you. And if you can't control your superiority, I hope they're good enough teachers not to take it out on your kid.

+1

As much as I hate to admit it, my DC spends more hours with teachers than with me during the week. I'm certainly not going to treat those people like shit under my shoes. I want us to be a team and I want to support them however they can. Wrangling 25 kids all day, even with two assistants, is a damned hard job. I'd have no problem inviting his teachers in for a visit and a cup of coffee. If you are not in DC then you shouldn't be in our system anyway. And if you are in DC I'm thinking you should probably just go ahead and move already.

[Anonymous]

OP, please disenroll and just send your child to your MD or VA school already.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Our charter makes parents sign a document agreeing to home visits to confirm residency.

PP here. At our DCPS it's completely voluntary. Only about 30 minutes. The teachers have a checklist of questions like your hopes and dreams for the child, etc.

Don't even bother to clean up more than usual. Our teacher barely made it past the front door! DS was SO excited to show his Legos. Dragged out a box of them and plopped at her feet the second she sat down. He called it his teacher playdate. lol

It had nothing to do with residency. DCPS isn't exactly in a rush to investigate residency status these days.

[Anonymous]

Our visit was in the classroom with teacher, aide, myself and my child. It was great.

[Anonymous]

Our charter had a very long waitlist but the home visit is primarily to make the child comfortable and familiar with the teachers. If they also happen to find a few families who don't reside in DC that's great.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have no experience with home visits, is this for a preschooler? From reading these boards, it seems that one of the purposes is engagement with the student's family to better serve the child and another is confirming residency.



It's for an elementary school (a charter). Can't you "engage" with the family without inviting yourself into someone's house? As for confirmation of residency, they aren't stating that this is the reason for the visit, so coming over under a false pretense to bust people sounds a little fascist to me.



Maybe you should just go ahead and disenroll so a DC resident can get the spot ans stop being so crazy.



+1!



+2. You're busted.

+3.

[Anonymous]

there is more than one type of home visit that a school might conduct:
one--to get to know the child and family on their own turf; to make the connection between home and school stronger.
two--the school is conducting a home visit to determine if the child really has residency in DC
why don't you ask what the purpose is? our charter conducts both.

[Anonymous]

Our DCPS pre-k is not one that people are trying to sneak into dishonestly, so our home visits weren't at all about checking residency. It was all about getting to know the child. Our school also arranged for 3 playdates for the incoming students to that they can get to know each other and get comfortable with the teachers. Finally, the week before school started they scheduled meetings with the teacher in the classroom so that our child could see the inside of the school. I greatly appreciated all the effort the teachers put in (much of it during their own free time) to get to know the students.

[Anonymous]

OP here--true to form, all of the snarky DCUM posts. And completely wrong about my not living in DC, but whatever. It's pretty amazing what the snarks come up with in speculating about a poster's background/worldview/life based on 5 sentences.

A school is an institution, is it not? How is it insulting to call a teacher an institutional employee? It wasn't meant to be insulting, more to show that it's more than just the teacher you are inviting in your home, and if they see something they might not like, they will report it to someone.

Thank you to the posters who described their experiences with home visits.

[Anonymous]

OP, haven't you realized that most people on this forum are mindless idiots?

You could tell them that eating shit was a healthy luxury, and as long as they heard it on the news and it was approved by an "authority", they'd be gobbling that junk up before they had a chance to gag. Then they'd look at you funny for telling them they smell like shit.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP,
Do you have other people come into your home?

What is your in bounds school?

OP here--occasionally have guests over, but our place is a tiny condo, so not very often. Not putting my in-bound school down b/c I want to remain anonymous.

[Anonymous]

Random visits are a possibility at any DCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here--true to form, all of the snarky DCUM posts. And completely wrong about my not living in DC, but whatever. It's pretty amazing what the snarks come up with in speculating about a poster's background/worldview/life based on 5 sentences.

A school is an institution, is it not? How is it insulting to call a teacher an institutional employee? It wasn't meant to be insulting, more to show that it's more than just the teacher you are inviting in your home, and if they see something they might not like, they will report it to someone.

Thank you to the posters who described their experiences with home visits.

Um, like what? I don't mean to be "snarky" but I can't imagine what a teacher would be reporting to "someone" from a home visit, except some really bad/unsafe living conditions?

[Anonymous]

OP sounds like she may have some serious housekeeping issues. The teachers come for 1/2 hour to see your kid and kids love it. It's no big deal unless your house is reportably unsafe/filthy.