Emotional needs of our students

[Anonymous]

I sent copies to my College's admissions office as well as our public high school's college admissions director. They howled.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I sent copies to my College's admissions office as well as our public high school's college admissions director. They howled.

Love it! Can't wait to read it. Going to send some copies as well to some of my friends.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:"Crazy U" should be required reading for every parent and high school teacher who cares, but especially for the Fairfax County School Board.

Anyone think the Board would read it?

they want their version of the Oscar, so no

Spot on.

[Anonymous]

I remember seeing a documentary where fat teens talked about being bullied horribly. These kids were moved by their parents to a private school where they were helped with their weight loss at the same time they were being educated. All those kids said how much better things were for them, how much happier they were, how they had thought about suicide, but now saw a future ahead of them. They described a situational depression, and that type of depression is horrible when you feel trapped. And high school kids ARE trapped, in that if parents don't hear their concerns, if administrators don't hear their concerns, they feel hopeless.

My point, of course, is not about weight so please don't go there. My point is that environment makes a huge difference, and we DO have choices for our kids. One can move them to another public school in the area, move them to private school, or home-school (there are large communities of home-schoolers, programs, social events, etc).

For me, as I've mentioned, my first son had a learning disability that would now be accommodated (i.e. kids can bring tablets, etc), but at the time, was not. Moving him to a school where the kids brought laptops daily made the problem disappear. My daughter was just not happy in her public high school. After moving her, she's discovered that she loves a smaller, interactive environment where she has more influence and can get to know her teachers as people. She's choosing a college with that in mind. My youngest simply got a taste for private over public, and that was it for him. He moved to the same school as my eldest child, and it's like he has always belonged there.

All three kids loved the public elementary. My daughter loved the public middle school, the same one my son hated. Listening to the kids, understanding their needs and desires, made a huge difference.

Kids go through K-12 one time; why keep it miserable for them? Why allow administrators to do so? School boards? Politicians? As parents, it's our job to fight for what isn't working and sometimes, to know when to drop and punt.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing a documentary where fat teens talked about being bullied horribly. These kids were moved by their parents to a private school where they were helped with their weight loss at the same time they were being educated. All those kids said how much better things were for them, how much happier they were, how they had thought about suicide, but now saw a future ahead of them. They described a situational depression, and that type of depression is horrible when you feel trapped. And high school kids ARE trapped, in that if parents don't hear their concerns, if administrators don't hear their concerns, they feel hopeless.

My point, of course, is not about weight so please don't go there. My point is that environment makes a huge difference, and we DO have choices for our kids. One can move them to another public school in the area, move them to private school, or home-school (there are large communities of home-schoolers, programs, social events, etc).

For me, as I've mentioned, my first son had a learning disability that would now be accommodated (i.e. kids can bring tablets, etc), but at the time, was not. Moving him to a school where the kids brought laptops daily made the problem disappear. My daughter was just not happy in her public high school. After moving her, she's discovered that she loves a smaller, interactive environment where she has more influence and can get to know her teachers as people. She's choosing a college with that in mind. My youngest simply got a taste for private over public, and that was it for him. He moved to the same school as my eldest child, and it's like he has always belonged there.

All three kids loved the public elementary. My daughter loved the public middle school, the same one my son hated. Listening to the kids, understanding their needs and desires, made a huge difference.

Kids go through K-12 one time; why keep it miserable for them? Why allow administrators to do so? School boards? Politicians? As parents, it's our job to fight for what isn't working and sometimes, to know when to drop and punt.

Yes, Linda, that's well said, but not everyone can afford three private school tuitions, and you never should have extrapolated to the extent you did based on your daughter's own personal experience to bash Langley, particularly over the past 10 days. That was incredibly painful and distressing to people there at a time when what they most needed was love and support.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing a documentary where fat teens talked about being bullied horribly. These kids were moved by their parents to a private school where they were helped with their weight loss at the same time they were being educated. All those kids said how much better things were for them, how much happier they were, how they had thought about suicide, but now saw a future ahead of them. They described a situational depression, and that type of depression is horrible when you feel trapped. And high school kids ARE trapped, in that if parents don't hear their concerns, if administrators don't hear their concerns, they feel hopeless.

My point, of course, is not about weight so please don't go there. My point is that environment makes a huge difference, and we DO have choices for our kids. One can move them to another public school in the area, move them to private school, or home-school (there are large communities of home-schoolers, programs, social events, etc).

For me, as I've mentioned, my first son had a learning disability that would now be accommodated (i.e. kids can bring tablets, etc), but at the time, was not. Moving him to a school where the kids brought laptops daily made the problem disappear. My daughter was just not happy in her public high school. After moving her, she's discovered that she loves a smaller, interactive environment where she has more influence and can get to know her teachers as people. She's choosing a college with that in mind. My youngest simply got a taste for private over public, and that was it for him. He moved to the same school as my eldest child, and it's like he has always belonged there.

All three kids loved the public elementary. My daughter loved the public middle school, the same one my son hated. Listening to the kids, understanding their needs and desires, made a huge difference.

Kids go through K-12 one time; why keep it miserable for them? Why allow administrators to do so? School boards? Politicians? As parents, it's our job to fight for what isn't working and sometimes, to know when to drop and punt.

Yes, Linda, that's well said, but not everyone can afford three private school tuitions, and you never should have extrapolated to the extent you did based on your daughter's own personal experience to bash Langley, particularly over the past 10 days. That was incredibly painful and distressing to people there at a time when what they most needed was love and support.

You can change publics, yes? I know people who have left Langley for Herndon, for McLean, and it's been a great change. We have talked on FB and I understand that your experience was lovely; but clearly it is NOT lovely for a lot of the other students at Langley, and other high-pressure schools across the nation, and if ADULTS don't hold other ADULTS accountable for their behavior, then nothing changes. What's painful and distressing to me is that two young lives were lost, and countless others across the nation are at risk. Love and compassion are grand things; so is action and change.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I remember seeing a documentary where fat teens talked about being bullied horribly. These kids were moved by their parents to a private school where they were helped with their weight loss at the same time they were being educated. All those kids said how much better things were for them, how much happier they were, how they had thought about suicide, but now saw a future ahead of them. They described a situational depression, and that type of depression is horrible when you feel trapped. And high school kids ARE trapped, in that if parents don't hear their concerns, if administrators don't hear their concerns, they feel hopeless.

My point, of course, is not about weight so please don't go there. My point is that environment makes a huge difference, and we DO have choices for our kids. One can move them to another public school in the area, move them to private school, or home-school (there are large communities of home-schoolers, programs, social events, etc).

For me, as I've mentioned, my first son had a learning disability that would now be accommodated (i.e. kids can bring tablets, etc), but at the time, was not. Moving him to a school where the kids brought laptops daily made the problem disappear. My daughter was just not happy in her public high school. After moving her, she's discovered that she loves a smaller, interactive environment where she has more influence and can get to know her teachers as people. She's choosing a college with that in mind. My youngest simply got a taste for private over public, and that was it for him. He moved to the same school as my eldest child, and it's like he has always belonged there.

All three kids loved the public elementary. My daughter loved the public middle school, the same one my son hated. Listening to the kids, understanding their needs and desires, made a huge difference.

Kids go through K-12 one time; why keep it miserable for them? Why allow administrators to do so? School boards? Politicians? As parents, it's our job to fight for what isn't working and sometimes, to know when to drop and punt.

Yes, Linda, that's well said, but not everyone can afford three private school tuitions, and you never should have extrapolated to the extent you did based on your daughter's own personal experience to bash Langley, particularly over the past 10 days. That was incredibly painful and distressing to people there at a time when what they most needed was love and support.

Who is Linda? Is she that ridiculous Langley basher? Why is she trying to compare her situation with that of the entire Langley student body? PP, I completely agree with your words above.

[Anonymous]

Me. My kid went to Langley and some of her friends still go to Langley. Furthermore, the parents in this community send their kids to Langley. Therefore, it makes sense that we are very much in touch with the Langley community on the whole. So I think that makes me qualified to share my viewpoint on what goes on there. It's not everyone's experience, but is anything?

I've posted this comment before by a mental health professional in the area:

“In the McLean and Langley Pyramid if you don't go to college, don't get into a ‘good’ college, you are seen as a let down to your school, your family and your community,” said Melissa Sporn, a mental health professional and SCC board member. “As a result I am routinely seeing patients in my practice who are overstressed, overworked and overwhelmed. Many of these students deal with these pressures by self-medicating with drugs and alcohol, cutting and/or engaging in other negative behaviors.”

This is the link:

http://www.connectionnewspapers.com/news/2013/nov/12/scc-takes-aim-student-stress/

I know who is posting; I will not expose this person. Not my style.

[Anonymous]

Those statements could be attributed to any school and I don't care who says them, it is an opinion-not a fact. And, I am not a part of the McLean Langley community.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Those statements could be attributed to any school and I don't care who says them, it is an opinion-not a fact. And, I am not a part of the McLean Langley community.

Any school with the same demographics, yes. But she IS talking about what she sees in her practice. I have heard the same thing from other medical professionals in the area. I assumed they know of what they speak

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Those statements could be attributed to any school and I don't care who says them, it is an opinion-not a fact. And, I am not a part of the McLean Langley community.

Any school with the same demographics, yes. But she IS talking about what she sees in her practice. I have heard the same thing from other medical professionals in the area. I assumed they know of what they speak

A mental health professional whose office is in downtown McLean is going to see more kids from Langley and McLean than from other schools. I will give Dr. Sporn the benefit of the doubt, and assume that she's reporting what her patients tell her, but her patients aren't necessarily representative of most students in the pyramids. PP tells us frequently that she'd be happy if her private-school DD goes to a lesser-known university (like Vanderbilt, LOL), but these pyramids have plenty of kids who happily go off to schools like VT, VCU, and JMU with those around them wishing them to the best. I wonder whether they'd get the same reception at Bullis.

[Anonymous]

Just remember, the mental health professionals are seeing kids who need help. That could skew their opinions.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Those statements could be attributed to any school and I don't care who says them, it is an opinion-not a fact. And, I am not a part of the McLean Langley community.

Any school with the same demographics, yes. But she IS talking about what she sees in her practice. I have heard the same thing from other medical professionals in the area. I assumed they know of what they speak

A mental health professional whose office is in downtown McLean is going to see more kids from Langley and McLean than from other schools. I will give Dr. Sporn the benefit of the doubt, and assume that she's reporting what her patients tell her, but her patients aren't necessarily representative of most students in the pyramids. PP tells us frequently that she'd be happy if her private-school DD goes to a lesser-known university (like Vanderbilt, LOL), but these pyramids have plenty of kids who happily go off to schools like VT, VCU, and JMU with those around them wishing them to the best. I wonder whether they'd get the same reception at Bullis.

Actually, I don't care where she goes to school as long as she's happy. Vanderbilt is in the Heart of Nashville, and any acoustic guitar player would love to spend time there, hence my statement.

I have made it a point to speak with many medical professionals in the area. Langley's reputation is notorious for stress. Do you see all those posters at Langley and the parent seminars and coffee addressing it?

If you look at where Bullis kids go to school, it's all over the map, and that is good, at least for us

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Those statements could be attributed to any school and I don't care who says them, it is an opinion-not a fact. And, I am not a part of the McLean Langley community.

Any school with the same demographics, yes. But she IS talking about what she sees in her practice. I have heard the same thing from other medical professionals in the area. I assumed they know of what they speak

A mental health professional whose office is in downtown McLean is going to see more kids from Langley and McLean than from other schools. I will give Dr. Sporn the benefit of the doubt, and assume that she's reporting what her patients tell her, but her patients aren't necessarily representative of most students in the pyramids. PP tells us frequently that she'd be happy if her private-school DD goes to a lesser-known university (like Vanderbilt, LOL), but these pyramids have plenty of kids who happily go off to schools like VT, VCU, and JMU with those around them wishing them to the best. I wonder whether they'd get the same reception at Bullis.

Actually, I don't care where she goes to school as long as she's happy. Vanderbilt is in the Heart of Nashville, and any acoustic guitar player would love to spend time there, hence my statement.

I have made it a point to speak with many medical professionals in the area. Langley's reputation is notorious for stress. Do you see all those posters at Langley and the parent seminars and coffee addressing it?

If you look at where Bullis kids go to school, it's all over the map, and that is good, at least for us

The schools that Langley students attend are "all over the map" as well. The only difference is that, because of your own misadventures, you want to portray Langley kids who go to lesser-known schools as disappointments to their families prone to psychological problems, and your Bullis child and her friends who might choose to do so as free-range kids who are allowed to follow their passions. Self-serving doesn't begin to describe it.

[Anonymous]

It's not me that has that attitude. It's the parents I speak to