International trip for 5th graders?
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Anonymous
| What are other examples of the lack of communication at YY? |
Anonymous
I think that the number of kids is quite a bit higher than this. I don't know the final numbers and there could be more going as the application is due today. |
Anonymous
| That is the number the school put on the portal. |
Anonymous
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CYCLE 1 – IMMERSION
The first cycle includes the Kinder 1, Kinder 2 and Kinder 3* classes and forms the base of the bilingual education model. Children acquire bilingual skills through play that set the foundation for future learning processes. Because the best time to acquire a second language is between the ages of three and six, language acquisition is very natural at this stage. All subjects are studied at age-appropriate levels in the target language, starting as early as 3-years-old in this first cycle. Students are not simply learning French, Mandarin or Spanish, but rather, they are learning ALL traditional subjects IN French, Mandarin or Spanish. *DMIS refers to the 3-years-old, Pre-Kindergarten and Kindergarten classes as Kinder 1, Kinder 2 and Kinder 3, respectively, to accurately reflect the academic curricula offered at these earlier stages, and to correspond with the foreign curricula that DMIS follows from China, France and Spain. CYCLE 2 – SOLIDIFYING THE KNOWLEDGE BASE In Grades 1 and 2, the emphasis shifts to the relationship between the oral and written language. English language instruction becomes more formalized and focuses on early literacy skills, while all subjects – including math and science – continue to be studied in the target language of French, Mandarin or Spanish. CYCLE 3 – EXPANDING THE KNOWLEDGE BASE AND INTRODUCTION OF A THIRD LANGUAGE In Grades 3, 4 and 5, students expand their study of the target language. Students become bilingual at this stage, and are introduced to a third language which can be studied through Grade 8. Instruction in English accounts for approximately half of the time spent in class, moving beyond basic grammar and vocabulary, and delving into literature, science and math. English instruction of science and math complements the instruction already given up to this point in the target language. CYCLE 4 – BECOMING RESPONSIBLE CITIZENS DMIS is the only midle school – public or private – in the Denver region offering the International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme with this type of intensive foreign language instruction. It is not taught as a “second” language only a few periods a week, but rather as a “first” language through immersion, accounting for 20% of the school week. During this cycle, students in Grades 6 – 8 build the academic, technological, social, emotional and ethical skills that will allow them to succeed in high school, college and beyond. A strong set of values is consistently weaved throughout the middle school academics, building critical thinkers and responsible global citizens. |
Anonymous
| I think that a trip of this nature is horribly inappropriate--whether it is 5th or 8th grade. It is divisive and socially isolating to the parents who either cannot afford it or prefer to allocate their resources differently. There will be immense social pressure placed on the kids who are not going. This country is and has been in a recession. When will we stop raising the bar for unreasonable lifestyle expectations for our kids? My parents sent 4 kids through Sidwell and St. Albans in the late 70's through the mid 80's. A class wide european trip was never a thing. Absurd. Families did this on an individual basis, of course. But to set up such class wide economic division in public school is completely inappropriate. Plus, unbelievably, the trip is free for teachers and administrators. This just absurd. The trip organizers do much of the work and chaperoning-(I worked for one of these companies when I first graduated college). I just really, really find this to be distasteful. I do blame the school for doing this. They are dangling the trip in front of the children and placing the wedge between the haves and the have nots. This is public school. |
Anonymous
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The least palatable aspect is that it is during the school year. Anyone not attending the trip remains in class while a handful of classmates get to attend. Less than a third of the students are able to go, which isn't surprising given the timing and expense.
It is also horribly distasteful that the 10 parents going on the trip forced the PA to change the date of the auction to work around the trip schedule. After the fit they threw 4 or 5 months after the date was announced I expect them to be first in line to buy tickets and spend lots of money to benefit the school. But I wonder how much they will be able to contribute to that fundraiser after they shell out $7,000 on a vacation with their child. I'm not on the auction planning committee but maybe I'll join so that I can be justified in telling them all to go to hell when they don't even show up. |
Anonymous
Wow. You might want to take something for that, dear! |
Anonymous
+1! I commend you! |
Anonymous
It must be really nice to get a free trip out of this. It looks like that admin established a good working relationship with the traveling company who I'm sure was dying to get the biz from YY. Good going, YY. Who are the admin(s) going on the trip? Principal? ED? CEO? EEO? CIO? FUC? |
Anonymous
How childish, misinformed and inappropriate. What's distasteful is your slandering parents who are involved and engaged and trying to support their children, their children's classmates and this school -- many of them from the very beginning. Not sure why folks want to continue spinning these myths and half truths about this trip. If you don't want your child to go---- don't go. If you want to make sure all who want to go can go --- fundraise or donate. Otherwise mind your own business, get a life or at least keep your nastiness to yourself. I presume it's just the time we live in. I find that sad and .......extremely distasteful. |
Anonymous
What myths and half truths? |
Anonymous
Here are a few examples -- just from this post.....won't bother to go through the other 17 pages 1) The PA was "forced" to change a date..... 2) A group of parents "threw a fit"..... 3) "Less than a third of the class is able to go"..... 4) The Gala date was set before the trip date..... Will stop there for now. Again, if you want to make sure all who want to go can go --- fundraise or donate or find a way to help -- there's still plenty of time for that! And, this would be a lot more constructive and much less distasteful than joining a committee just so you can tell folks "to go to hell". Be a part of the solution, for most people, THAT is much more palatable! |
Anonymous
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YY boosters keep up your show. It's very entertaining.
All I can say is it reminds me of the Emperor's New Clothes, the Emperor himself and the ass-kissers around him. You clearly don't know what you may seem like to the rest of the us. GET A MIRROR or MEDICINE! |
Anonymous
| Maybe the gala will have an item for going to see a shrink to get help. |
Anonymous
No offense, but PP is correct with all of the things you cited. Every one of these is true. The date was announced in June and no one complained about a conflict of dates until a half dozen of them came to the September meeting. They derailed the agenda with a 20 minute tirade about how they deserved to be at the auction, too. I was there and it was embarrassing and uncomfortable to watch. If you were there you would have seen that plus the nonsense that came across the listserve after that. The whole school needed to change plans for the biggest fund raiser of the year to please the TEN parents going on a trip. It should also be noted that the trip wasn't even announced to the rest of the school until word leaked out some time in the summer, a couple of months after the PA announced the date. As for the number of people attending, that is what the school published on the portal. I guess it is possible the school is intentionally posted erroneous information, but that is a long shot. Here is a news flash. The community is very divided about this trip. Like most controversial issues, some people are loud boosters and support it strongly, some are indifferent and others are silently and strongly opposed. I hear lots of friends talking that they want to help the kids who are in the top class because they've had it hard every single year, but they don't want to support this fund raising per se because they don't agree with the trip and the way it is being done. Every couple of days we are getting new notices about fund raisers for it, and now it is already starting with the younger classes. I guess I will hear about fund raisers at least twice a week for the next 5 years. |