FCPS Teachers - would you be ok with kids skipping morning meeting/afternoon wrap up?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:This is what is so frustrating. Teachers are certainly the experts on pedagogy. But those of us who are parents also know children, specifically our own. When you say something that sounds unbelievable - zoom morning meeting is essential to your kids success - it doesn’t pass the sniff test. I agree that morning meeting is valuable community building time in person. But those of us who have group family zoom sessions and watch out kids wander off even though they live their grandparents and cousins know this is just nonsense.

Honestly, then don’t do it. Don’t ask will the teacher care. It doesn’t matter. You’ve decided you don’t value this and won’t make your kid do it. That’s your choice. Why come here for approval then?

Unless it was the OP, this poster isn't asking for approval. They're just pointing out that the teacher's response lacked any degree of credibility.

It doesn’t lack credibility because it doesn’t apply to her one kid. Some kids hate zoom and will walk off. Most kids will do that when it’s their boring family on zoom. A teacher is trained to facilitate conversation and dialogue among the kids on different topics to build community. Will some kids still be bored? Yes. does that mean it doesn’t have value or it won’t be meaningful for some kids, no.

Are you really arguing that this only true for my kid? I can’t disprove that. But my instinct says my kid isn’t that unusual. What percentage of your class do you think this will be effective for? Any boys?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, what do parents want? It seems there will be complaining either way. There were a ton of complaints that the time in the spring was not enough live time. The county gives you more live time and parents are still mad. You can’t have it both ways. The school district cannot please everyone!

Please, don't be disingenuous - you know what parents want. They want their kid to learn Math, LA and social studies. Everything else is just to keep the others employed (pe, coaches, specials). Nothing wrong with that since we are in a pandemic... it doesn't mean we want and will make our children sit through 6 hours of DL just so p.e teachers and some others feel essential.

I disagree with this. You have a ton of parents on here saying their kid will be just logging in for math. I get the not wanting to do specials and wrap up. I don’t get why you would have a kid miss LA and SS/Sci

No you don't. 1 person said it.

There are multiple posts on this board with parents saying this.

[Anonymous]

I find it interesting that many families who wanted socialization as the main reason for choosing hybrid are now saying the parts of DL that offer that are a waste of time. To a parent those times may seem unimportant but it’s really some of the kids favorite part of the day. Why would you deny them time to talk with their classmates?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Honestly, what do parents want? It seems there will be complaining either way. There were a ton of complaints that the time in the spring was not enough live time. The county gives you more live time and parents are still mad. You can’t have it both ways. The school district cannot please everyone!

Please, don't be disingenuous - you know what parents want. They want their kid to learn Math, LA and social studies. Everything else is just to keep the others employed (pe, coaches, specials). Nothing wrong with that since we are in a pandemic... it doesn't mean we want and will make our children sit through 6 hours of DL just so p.e teachers and some others feel essential.

I disagree with this. You have a ton of parents on here saying their kid will be just logging in for math. I get the not wanting to do specials and wrap up. I don’t get why you would have a kid miss LA and SS/Sci

No you don't. 1 person said it.

There are multiple posts on this board with parents saying this.

So help them understand why it’s worth their time. Some parents, based on the spring, and their knowledge of their child, believe that they will have to supplement and believe the school offered DL is not the way to go. There has been nothing offered to date except “trust us” to suggest differently. Once schools start, and people start the new and improved DL, they will vote with their actions on making their join class or not. I am personally in a wait and see mode but I can certainly understand those who say there is no reason to believe anything will be different. See the thread on that - some teacher or group of teachers told us to shut up because they were on vacation when we asked.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that many families who wanted socialization as the main reason for choosing hybrid are now saying the parts of DL that offer that are a waste of time. To a parent those times may seem unimportant but it’s really some of the kids favorite part of the day. Why would you deny them time to talk with their classmates?

Because we do not believe this is “socialization” perhaps?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that many families who wanted socialization as the main reason for choosing hybrid are now saying the parts of DL that offer that are a waste of time. To a parent those times may seem unimportant but it’s really some of the kids favorite part of the day. Why would you deny them time to talk with their classmates?

Because we do not believe this is “socialization” perhaps?

“If my kid can’t socialize in person he will ONLY DO MATH.”

Make it make sense.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that many families who wanted socialization as the main reason for choosing hybrid are now saying the parts of DL that offer that are a waste of time. To a parent those times may seem unimportant but it’s really some of the kids favorite part of the day. Why would you deny them time to talk with their classmates?

Because we do not believe this is “socialization” perhaps?

“If my kid can’t socialize in person he will ONLY DO MATH.”

Make it make sense.

DP. It doesn’t. But then it does explain why they were so desperate for two days a week of “socialization” before. Morning meeting was absolutely the best part of distance learning for young kids. Maybe these parents don’t know what morning meeting is? It’s basically show and share. Kids love it. A bright start to an otherwise dismal day!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that many families who wanted socialization as the main reason for choosing hybrid are now saying the parts of DL that offer that are a waste of time. To a parent those times may seem unimportant but it’s really some of the kids favorite part of the day. Why would you deny them time to talk with their classmates?

Because we do not believe this is “socialization” perhaps?

“If my kid can’t socialize in person he will ONLY DO MATH.”

Make it make sense.

DP. It doesn’t. But then it does explain why they were so desperate for two days a week of “socialization” before. Morning meeting was absolutely the best part of distance learning for young kids. Maybe these parents don’t know what morning meeting is? It’s basically show and share. Kids love it. A bright start to an otherwise dismal day!

This is a broad generalization. My 8 year old did not like morning meeting, he always said pass if his name was called. Some like it, some don’t. My DS started bringing a book to his DL session and reading under the table because DL is just not engaging enough for most kids. I am a physician and work outside the home 4 days per week. On the day I was home, my DC couldn’t wait for the 1 hour session to end. For the upcoming year, it won’t be possible to have a parent monitor him most days. I imagine there will be times he forgets to log in on time in the morning or doesn’t log back in on time during a break. I imagine a lot of reading under the table or playing with toys. I’m not going to stress about it, too many other things to stress about at this point. I will do math and reading with him at night and on the weekends, the rest is what it is. Each parent is making the decisions they feel are best for their children. No great options, just lots of not so good ones.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that many families who wanted socialization as the main reason for choosing hybrid are now saying the parts of DL that offer that are a waste of time. To a parent those times may seem unimportant but it’s really some of the kids favorite part of the day. Why would you deny them time to talk with their classmates?

Because we do not believe this is “socialization” perhaps?

“If my kid can’t socialize in person he will ONLY DO MATH.”

Make it make sense.

DP. It doesn’t. But then it does explain why they were so desperate for two days a week of “socialization” before. Morning meeting was absolutely the best part of distance learning for young kids. Maybe these parents don’t know what morning meeting is? It’s basically show and share. Kids love it. A bright start to an otherwise dismal day!

This is a broad generalization. My 8 year old did not like morning meeting, he always said pass if his name was called. Some like it, some don’t. My DS started bringing a book to his DL session and reading under the table because DL is just not engaging enough for most kids. I am a physician and work outside the home 4 days per week. On the day I was home, my DC couldn’t wait for the 1 hour session to end. For the upcoming year, it won’t be possible to have a parent monitor him most days. I imagine there will be times he forgets to log in on time in the morning or doesn’t log back in on time during a break. I imagine a lot of reading under the table or playing with toys. I’m not going to stress about it, too many other things to stress about at this point. I will do math and reading with him at night and on the weekends, the rest is what it is. Each parent is making the decisions they feel are best for their children. No great options, just lots of not so good ones.

Honestly, everyone needs to remember that none of this is crafted based on what is best for your child. My kid loved DL and had a fantastic teacher. He’s weirdly excited to get to do “computer school,” because he’s normally not allowed screen time. This feels like a weird treat for him. That doesn’t mean that every kid loves it. Every parent has crappy choices to make here, and we just have to do the best we can. If you are worried about attendance etc. talk to the principal or pull your kid out of FCPS.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that many families who wanted socialization as the main reason for choosing hybrid are now saying the parts of DL that offer that are a waste of time. To a parent those times may seem unimportant but it’s really some of the kids favorite part of the day. Why would you deny them time to talk with their classmates?

I am not planning on denying anything pp - if my children WANT to watch pe/arts/music or whatever, of course I will allow them to (caveat - do NOT expect me to help with art though and go hunting for stuff in the house. That type of activity will not be allowed, period) - anything else, if they WANT, of course they can do it. It is "free."

But the difference is that I will MAKE my child watch math, la and social studies even if they don't like or want it. These I consider essential.

[Anonymous]

The saddest thing about all this is the breaking of the parent-teacher bond for some. I honestly never thought about my kids teachers too much except to be grateful and wanting to see if I could support things in some way at home. We’ve had good teachers, bad teachers, and middling teachers and I still considered it a partnership. Talking to friends right now, some are pissed at teachers right now. I also no longer think of teachers right now as being on the same team with respect to my my kids needs and we’ll-being. I hope things settle down. This animosity is good for no-one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The saddest thing about all this is the breaking of the parent-teacher bond for some. I honestly never thought about my kids teachers too much except to be grateful and wanting to see if I could support things in some way at home. We’ve had good teachers, bad teachers, and middling teachers and I still considered it a partnership. Talking to friends right now, some are pissed at teachers right now. I also no longer think of teachers right now as being on the same team with respect to my my kids needs and we’ll-being. I hope things settle down. This animosity is good for no-one.

I’m not a teacher, but teaching is a profession. My kid’s teacher had a right to be concerned for his/her health and their own family’s and make decisions accordingly. I don’t feel any animosity towards them. They haven’t done anything to me personally. If my kids teacher is “bad” in the fall than that will be addressed, but I’m not going to make generalization that all teachers are bad or don’t want to go back. Over half in FCPS chose hybrid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I find it interesting that many families who wanted socialization as the main reason for choosing hybrid are now saying the parts of DL that offer that are a waste of time. To a parent those times may seem unimportant but it’s really some of the kids favorite part of the day. Why would you deny them time to talk with their classmates?

I am not planning on denying anything pp - if my children WANT to watch pe/arts/music or whatever, of course I will allow them to (caveat - do NOT expect me to help with art though and go hunting for stuff in the house. That type of activity will not be allowed, period) - anything else, if they WANT, of course they can do it. It is "free."

But the difference is that I will MAKE my child watch math, la and social studies even if they don't like or want it. These I consider essential.

Goodness. Just take a deep breath, and wait and see what happens instead of trying to decide what must happen a month from now. Go with the flow. It will work out!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The saddest thing about all this is the breaking of the parent-teacher bond for some. I honestly never thought about my kids teachers too much except to be grateful and wanting to see if I could support things in some way at home. We’ve had good teachers, bad teachers, and middling teachers and I still considered it a partnership. Talking to friends right now, some are pissed at teachers right now. I also no longer think of teachers right now as being on the same team with respect to my my kids needs and we’ll-being. I hope things settle down. This animosity is good for no-one.

+1. It isn’t. But I used to believe parents teachers and parents both used to want to educate healthy happy kids. Now, their interests have diverged. From a parent perspective, I’ve come to realize teachers never viewed me as a real partner in supporting my kids education. And I have been shocked that teachers don’t want to be considered essential employees. It s hard to see it ever being them same again . It’s hard to imagine ever working with an FCPS teacher to solve an issue— especially now that I see how many teachers think that parents who are struggling with DL are lazy, bad parents, not parenting, awful people, hurting their kids— on teach said a@@holes. And now that I see teachers washing their hands of the idea they need to work to make DL a success and are saying they’ll punch in and meet meet contract hours, and all the problems with poor.y thought out DL rest on parents. I guess I had thought both parents and teachers would push back if DL scheduling wasn’t working. Now I realize it’s just parents.

You can’t return from that. Only go forward. We’ll see what school looks like in 3-54 years, but their is no chance that among affluent involved parents it looks like in did a year ago. I know I will be pushing and voting for vouchers, charter schools, school choice and the ability to take the money FCPS spends on my kid and look for a private or charter school that is more in line with my idea of collaboration between families and the schools, working with teachers for them to meet kids where they are at and me to support schools work at homes. And using developmentally appropriate strategies— ie not 6-7 hours of DL in early ES.

I also agree with everyone who points out that the recession is going to kill the 2021-22 budget. And I agree with all the people who say that we should be terminating pensions. Obviously pay out what we owe up to now. But, quit accruing additional liabilities. It would free up a ton of money when we most need it. And I don’t understand why non-essential employees would be getting pensions to being with.

We should also eliminate tenure and make firing dead weight easier. And we all know some teachers are dead weight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The saddest thing about all this is the breaking of the parent-teacher bond for some. I honestly never thought about my kids teachers too much except to be grateful and wanting to see if I could support things in some way at home. We’ve had good teachers, bad teachers, and middling teachers and I still considered it a partnership. Talking to friends right now, some are pissed at teachers right now. I also no longer think of teachers right now as being on the same team with respect to my my kids needs and we’ll-being. I hope things settle down. This animosity is good for no-one.

I’m not a teacher, but teaching is a profession. My kid’s teacher had a right to be concerned for his/her health and their own family’s and make decisions accordingly. I don’t feel any animosity towards them. They haven’t done anything to me personally. If my kids teacher is “bad” in the fall than that will be addressed, but I’m not going to make generalization that all teachers are bad or don’t want to go back. Over half in FCPS chose hybrid.

All essential workers are worried for their health. Why are teachers different.Oh— right. Because they aren’t essential. Time to treat them as not essential. Especially with the rapidly unfolding state budget crisis.

You see, many of assumed teachers were essential. Now that we know they are not. Well, that changes things.