Some school classroom looks so pretty

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a family with ADHD, I cannot emphasize enough that CLUTTER is very distracting for students with attention problems. Teachers seem to think that more is better, but actually less is better. There is a subset of teachers that understand this in middle and high school, but elementary teachers are the worse offenders.

Chevy Chase ES has a wealthy PTA and enough funds and space to create a wellness room with walking desks, string chairs, fountains and all sorts of relaxation items. This is great, and unfortunately not possible for overcrowded schools with no spare classrooms, or low-income schools. I am ALL for sharing funds across PTAs!!!

But in terms of visual clutter inside regular classrooms, it's very detrimental to students sensitive to distractions.

There is a difference between cluttered and decorated and YOUR child may do better without the stuff, but another child may do better WITH the stuff. That's awesome CCES does that. In our area, in the Buy Nothing Group, teachers are constantly asking for stuff and most of us are happy to help with toys, rugs and other things. I love decorated rooms. It is so much warmer and inviting. My child did better in decorated rooms.

Get your child outside mental health treatment.

Let’s reframe this… seek outside mental health treatment bc your child relies on a decorated classroom to excel. (Hint: most children don’t and many find it distracting so now you’re definitely the outlier) but.. continue to go off.

DP, but do you even hear yourself? Wow, you sound awful. No, children don’t need heavily decorated classrooms to excel. A decorated classroom isn’t going to change a child’s behavior either way.

How is it awful to tell someone if their child is struggling over a decorated classroom that they should get their child outside help? MCPS will not care and if you know your kid needs help, don't blame the classroom, help them. My child has SN. We spent a fortune on outside services.

Let’s reframe this: your child relies on classroom decorations to excel so maybe you should seek outside help. (Most children do NOT rely on classroom decorations to excel and many find it distracting) … so now you’re the outlier.

[Anonymous]

If a parent thinks classroom decorations are indicative of a teacher’s performance, we’ve already lost the battle. How do people think this way in the year 2022?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a family with ADHD, I cannot emphasize enough that CLUTTER is very distracting for students with attention problems. Teachers seem to think that more is better, but actually less is better. There is a subset of teachers that understand this in middle and high school, but elementary teachers are the worse offenders.

Chevy Chase ES has a wealthy PTA and enough funds and space to create a wellness room with walking desks, string chairs, fountains and all sorts of relaxation items. This is great, and unfortunately not possible for overcrowded schools with no spare classrooms, or low-income schools. I am ALL for sharing funds across PTAs!!!

But in terms of visual clutter inside regular classrooms, it's very detrimental to students sensitive to distractions.

x10000 times this

teachers who are having a hard time getting kids to do their work need to start with themselves and evaluate why they have such a cluttered and distraction filled room and the. wonder why kids are distracted!!

And parents should realize that hours of screen time isn't helping kids to be able to focus.

If that isn’t the pot calling the kettle black! ALL they do at school is stare at laptops! My kindergartner only watched a movie on weekend movie nights before K started. She was average in her grade so they stuck her in a corner on a laptop while they worked with other kids. I actually checked the screen time and it showed 5 hours a day of laptop use. Ridiculous. I would never, ever let my kid have screen time like that. Hell, the TV even reads the class book instead of a human reading books to them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a family with ADHD, I cannot emphasize enough that CLUTTER is very distracting for students with attention problems. Teachers seem to think that more is better, but actually less is better. There is a subset of teachers that understand this in middle and high school, but elementary teachers are the worse offenders.

Chevy Chase ES has a wealthy PTA and enough funds and space to create a wellness room with walking desks, string chairs, fountains and all sorts of relaxation items. This is great, and unfortunately not possible for overcrowded schools with no spare classrooms, or low-income schools. I am ALL for sharing funds across PTAs!!!

But in terms of visual clutter inside regular classrooms, it's very detrimental to students sensitive to distractions.

There is a difference between cluttered and decorated and YOUR child may do better without the stuff, but another child may do better WITH the stuff. That's awesome CCES does that. In our area, in the Buy Nothing Group, teachers are constantly asking for stuff and most of us are happy to help with toys, rugs and other things. I love decorated rooms. It is so much warmer and inviting. My child did better in decorated rooms.

Get your child outside mental health treatment.

DP, but do you even hear yourself? Wow, you sound awful. No, children don’t need heavily decorated classrooms to excel. A decorated classroom isn’t going to change a child’s behavior either way.

How is it awful to tell someone if their child is struggling over a decorated classroom that they should get their child outside help? MCPS will not care and if you know your kid needs help, don't blame the classroom, help them. My child has SN. We spent a fortune on outside services.

A child spends 6 hours a day in classrooms, 5 days a week. It's half of their waking hours for the younger set. Don't you think it's more cost-effective, most equitable to those with lower incomes, and generally less wasteful in general, to tone down the classrooms instead of expending more energy, time and money into fixing a problem that costs nothing to solve?

Beyond that, your premise doesn't even make sense: no amount of outside help is going to remediate the lost focus in class. My child had an IEP from K to 11th grade. He's had tutors, coaching, therapy, medication, psychiatrists, psychologists, and above all, daily support from his parents.

It would have helped if the elementary school classrooms had been more conducive to focus.

Then, it sounds like a regular public classroom was not a good fit and you should have fought for a different school or paid for private. A decorated classroom would make no difference. I love when teachers make the rooms warm and inviting and happy to donate.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If a parent thinks classroom decorations are indicative of a teacher’s performance, we’ve already lost the battle. How do people think this way in the year 2022?

They need something to criticize teachers about.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a family with ADHD, I cannot emphasize enough that CLUTTER is very distracting for students with attention problems. Teachers seem to think that more is better, but actually less is better. There is a subset of teachers that understand this in middle and high school, but elementary teachers are the worse offenders.

Chevy Chase ES has a wealthy PTA and enough funds and space to create a wellness room with walking desks, string chairs, fountains and all sorts of relaxation items. This is great, and unfortunately not possible for overcrowded schools with no spare classrooms, or low-income schools. I am ALL for sharing funds across PTAs!!!

But in terms of visual clutter inside regular classrooms, it's very detrimental to students sensitive to distractions.

There is a difference between cluttered and decorated and YOUR child may do better without the stuff, but another child may do better WITH the stuff. That's awesome CCES does that. In our area, in the Buy Nothing Group, teachers are constantly asking for stuff and most of us are happy to help with toys, rugs and other things. I love decorated rooms. It is so much warmer and inviting. My child did better in decorated rooms.

Get your child outside mental health treatment.

DP, but do you even hear yourself? Wow, you sound awful. No, children don’t need heavily decorated classrooms to excel. A decorated classroom isn’t going to change a child’s behavior either way.

How is it awful to tell someone if their child is struggling over a decorated classroom that they should get their child outside help? MCPS will not care and if you know your kid needs help, don't blame the classroom, help them. My child has SN. We spent a fortune on outside services.

A child spends 6 hours a day in classrooms, 5 days a week. It's half of their waking hours for the younger set. Don't you think it's more cost-effective, most equitable to those with lower incomes, and generally less wasteful in general, to tone down the classrooms instead of expending more energy, time and money into fixing a problem that costs nothing to solve?

Beyond that, your premise doesn't even make sense: no amount of outside help is going to remediate the lost focus in class. My child had an IEP from K to 11th grade. He's had tutors, coaching, therapy, medication, psychiatrists, psychologists, and above all, daily support from his parents.

It would have helped if the elementary school classrooms had been more conducive to focus.

Then, it sounds like a regular public classroom was not a good fit and you should have fought for a different school or paid for private. A decorated classroom would make no difference. I love when teachers make the rooms warm and inviting and happy to donate.

Warm and inviting is more about the teacher’s attitude than his or her stuff.

DS’s introduction to MCPS and high school was with a period 1 English teacher who had a Pinterest showcase classroom, but wavered between cold and hostile toward my son who was in the process of being adopted and had only been in Maryland for a couple months by late August. She assumed because he didn’t know MCPS ways and lingo that he was stupid, disobedient, or didn’t care about school. Luckily, he had 6 other teachers who cared more about learning about the students than having a picture perfect space.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a family with ADHD, I cannot emphasize enough that CLUTTER is very distracting for students with attention problems. Teachers seem to think that more is better, but actually less is better. There is a subset of teachers that understand this in middle and high school, but elementary teachers are the worse offenders.

Chevy Chase ES has a wealthy PTA and enough funds and space to create a wellness room with walking desks, string chairs, fountains and all sorts of relaxation items. This is great, and unfortunately not possible for overcrowded schools with no spare classrooms, or low-income schools. I am ALL for sharing funds across PTAs!!!

But in terms of visual clutter inside regular classrooms, it's very detrimental to students sensitive to distractions.

There is a difference between cluttered and decorated and YOUR child may do better without the stuff, but another child may do better WITH the stuff. That's awesome CCES does that. In our area, in the Buy Nothing Group, teachers are constantly asking for stuff and most of us are happy to help with toys, rugs and other things. I love decorated rooms. It is so much warmer and inviting. My child did better in decorated rooms.

Get your child outside mental health treatment.

DP, but do you even hear yourself? Wow, you sound awful. No, children don’t need heavily decorated classrooms to excel. A decorated classroom isn’t going to change a child’s behavior either way.

How is it awful to tell someone if their child is struggling over a decorated classroom that they should get their child outside help? MCPS will not care and if you know your kid needs help, don't blame the classroom, help them. My child has SN. We spent a fortune on outside services.

A child spends 6 hours a day in classrooms, 5 days a week. It's half of their waking hours for the younger set. Don't you think it's more cost-effective, most equitable to those with lower incomes, and generally less wasteful in general, to tone down the classrooms instead of expending more energy, time and money into fixing a problem that costs nothing to solve?

Beyond that, your premise doesn't even make sense: no amount of outside help is going to remediate the lost focus in class. My child had an IEP from K to 11th grade. He's had tutors, coaching, therapy, medication, psychiatrists, psychologists, and above all, daily support from his parents.

It would have helped if the elementary school classrooms had been more conducive to focus.

Then, it sounds like a regular public classroom was not a good fit and you should have fought for a different school or paid for private. A decorated classroom would make no difference. I love when teachers make the rooms warm and inviting and happy to donate.

Warm and inviting is more about the teacher’s attitude than his or her stuff.

DS’s introduction to MCPS and high school was with a period 1 English teacher who had a Pinterest showcase classroom, but wavered between cold and hostile toward my son who was in the process of being adopted and had only been in Maryland for a couple months by late August. She assumed because he didn’t know MCPS ways and lingo that he was stupid, disobedient, or didn’t care about school. Luckily, he had 6 other teachers who cared more about learning about the students than having a picture perfect space.

This is two separate issues. I like a decorated and warm classroom. We adopted our children. It only was an issue in elementary school when the teacher got upset over our family tree as she said it would confuse other kids and demand we redo it, which we refused.

A teacher having a nice classroom and putting care into their workspace has nothing to do with the quality of teaching or if that teacher can meet a child's needs. The PP child needed a more specialized classroom and keeping him in regular classes was clearly an issue.

[Anonymous]

My daughter spends a lot of her own money. She and her kids spend 6+ hours a day in that room. She wants it to feel calm, comfortable, and organized. She created an Amazon wish list for family. We love to donate to her classroom. She is a 7th year teacher.

[Anonymous]

My son’s elementary is departmentalized-two of his classrooms are over the top with decorations (yes, it’s nice to be in there) but his other classroom has minimal decorations. Guess who he has the best relationship with? The minimal deco teacher. Please stop judging teachers on trivial things that don’t matter. What matters to me is that my kid likes his teachers, and he LOVES that teacher.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a family with ADHD, I cannot emphasize enough that CLUTTER is very distracting for students with attention problems. Teachers seem to think that more is better, but actually less is better. There is a subset of teachers that understand this in middle and high school, but elementary teachers are the worse offenders.

Chevy Chase ES has a wealthy PTA and enough funds and space to create a wellness room with walking desks, string chairs, fountains and all sorts of relaxation items. This is great, and unfortunately not possible for overcrowded schools with no spare classrooms, or low-income schools. I am ALL for sharing funds across PTAs!!!

But in terms of visual clutter inside regular classrooms, it's very detrimental to students sensitive to distractions.

There is a difference between cluttered and decorated and YOUR child may do better without the stuff, but another child may do better WITH the stuff. That's awesome CCES does that. In our area, in the Buy Nothing Group, teachers are constantly asking for stuff and most of us are happy to help with toys, rugs and other things. I love decorated rooms. It is so much warmer and inviting. My child did better in decorated rooms.

Get your child outside mental health treatment.

DP, but do you even hear yourself? Wow, you sound awful. No, children don’t need heavily decorated classrooms to excel. A decorated classroom isn’t going to change a child’s behavior either way.

How is it awful to tell someone if their child is struggling over a decorated classroom that they should get their child outside help? MCPS will not care and if you know your kid needs help, don't blame the classroom, help them. My child has SN. We spent a fortune on outside services.

A child spends 6 hours a day in classrooms, 5 days a week. It's half of their waking hours for the younger set. Don't you think it's more cost-effective, most equitable to those with lower incomes, and generally less wasteful in general, to tone down the classrooms instead of expending more energy, time and money into fixing a problem that costs nothing to solve?

Beyond that, your premise doesn't even make sense: no amount of outside help is going to remediate the lost focus in class. My child had an IEP from K to 11th grade. He's had tutors, coaching, therapy, medication, psychiatrists, psychologists, and above all, daily support from his parents.

It would have helped if the elementary school classrooms had been more conducive to focus.

Then, it sounds like a regular public classroom was not a good fit and you should have fought for a different school or paid for private. A decorated classroom would make no difference. I love when teachers make the rooms warm and inviting and happy to donate.

Warm and inviting is more about the teacher’s attitude than his or her stuff.

DS’s introduction to MCPS and high school was with a period 1 English teacher who had a Pinterest showcase classroom, but wavered between cold and hostile toward my son who was in the process of being adopted and had only been in Maryland for a couple months by late August. She assumed because he didn’t know MCPS ways and lingo that he was stupid, disobedient, or didn’t care about school. Luckily, he had 6 other teachers who cared more about learning about the students than having a picture perfect space.

This is two separate issues. I like a decorated and warm classroom. We adopted our children. It only was an issue in elementary school when the teacher got upset over our family tree as she said it would confuse other kids and demand we redo it, which we refused.

A teacher having a nice classroom and putting care into their workspace has nothing to do with the quality of teaching or if that teacher can meet a child's needs. The PP child needed a more specialized classroom and keeping him in regular classes was clearly an issue.

You’re very privileged if this is the only incident you faced.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:As a family with ADHD, I cannot emphasize enough that CLUTTER is very distracting for students with attention problems. Teachers seem to think that more is better, but actually less is better. There is a subset of teachers that understand this in middle and high school, but elementary teachers are the worse offenders.

Chevy Chase ES has a wealthy PTA and enough funds and space to create a wellness room with walking desks, string chairs, fountains and all sorts of relaxation items. This is great, and unfortunately not possible for overcrowded schools with no spare classrooms, or low-income schools. I am ALL for sharing funds across PTAs!!!

But in terms of visual clutter inside regular classrooms, it's very detrimental to students sensitive to distractions.

There is a difference between cluttered and decorated and YOUR child may do better without the stuff, but another child may do better WITH the stuff. That's awesome CCES does that. In our area, in the Buy Nothing Group, teachers are constantly asking for stuff and most of us are happy to help with toys, rugs and other things. I love decorated rooms. It is so much warmer and inviting. My child did better in decorated rooms.

Get your child outside mental health treatment.

DP, but do you even hear yourself? Wow, you sound awful. No, children don’t need heavily decorated classrooms to excel. A decorated classroom isn’t going to change a child’s behavior either way.

How is it awful to tell someone if their child is struggling over a decorated classroom that they should get their child outside help? MCPS will not care and if you know your kid needs help, don't blame the classroom, help them. My child has SN. We spent a fortune on outside services.

A child spends 6 hours a day in classrooms, 5 days a week. It's half of their waking hours for the younger set. Don't you think it's more cost-effective, most equitable to those with lower incomes, and generally less wasteful in general, to tone down the classrooms instead of expending more energy, time and money into fixing a problem that costs nothing to solve?

Beyond that, your premise doesn't even make sense: no amount of outside help is going to remediate the lost focus in class. My child had an IEP from K to 11th grade. He's had tutors, coaching, therapy, medication, psychiatrists, psychologists, and above all, daily support from his parents.

It would have helped if the elementary school classrooms had been more conducive to focus.

Then, it sounds like a regular public classroom was not a good fit and you should have fought for a different school or paid for private. A decorated classroom would make no difference. I love when teachers make the rooms warm and inviting and happy to donate.

Warm and inviting is more about the teacher’s attitude than his or her stuff.

DS’s introduction to MCPS and high school was with a period 1 English teacher who had a Pinterest showcase classroom, but wavered between cold and hostile toward my son who was in the process of being adopted and had only been in Maryland for a couple months by late August. She assumed because he didn’t know MCPS ways and lingo that he was stupid, disobedient, or didn’t care about school. Luckily, he had 6 other teachers who cared more about learning about the students than having a picture perfect space.

This is two separate issues. I like a decorated and warm classroom. We adopted our children. It only was an issue in elementary school when the teacher got upset over our family tree as she said it would confuse other kids and demand we redo it, which we refused.

A teacher having a nice classroom and putting care into their workspace has nothing to do with the quality of teaching or if that teacher can meet a child's needs. The PP child needed a more specialized classroom and keeping him in regular classes was clearly an issue.

You’re very privileged if this is the only incident you faced.

We faced many issues with MCPS but this was just one discussion. MCPS has failed our child in many ways and we have spent a fortune outside MCPS to get the help needed.