Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My DD has severe anxiety and we pushed as hard as possible for her to go. It was awful to the point of her becoming sick due to the anxiety and having to return home. It makes me sick when I read how judgmental parents are on this forum. You don't know what's going on in other households and what parents are doing. It isn't always helicopter parenting or a parent who isn't trying their damned hardest to get their child to participate.

I was going to say something similar and then saw your reply. My child has significant anxiety and has been suicidal in the past. He is scheduled to go to Outdoor Ed but it's pretty nerve racking for all of us. It's easy to blame parents but you really can't know everything about other people's kids. And as my kid has told me, he is glad that he has parents who were not against medication because he knows that it has been life saving for him. I imagine that this is something similar.

Two of my kids have severe anxiety to the point of threatening suicide and I followed a lot of advice from therapists over the years about only doing controlled exposures, etc. Guess what? It didn't help them get better. I am now in the camp of pushing kids a lot more. So what if the PP's daughter had to come home early? She went and now knows that 1) she was brave enough to try and 2) nothing really terrible happened. Just letting kids imagine how awful it might be is not a reason to stay home.

Anonymous wrote:WTH? Who cares so much about outdoor ed that they are offended if another parent decides not to send their child. Its basically a low end sleep away experience. If my kid was dreading it, I wouldn't send them either.

If my kid was being bullied in school already, I 100% would not send them on an overnight trip with those people. Parent chaperones are not effective for managing bully situations. At best parents are usually uncomfortable verbally disciplining other people's kids. At worst, there are plenty of parents that see bullying as a right of passage and are just thrilled that their kid is the aggressor rather than victim.

If your child is being bullied in school, you should not allow that to continue. Put them in a different environment.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Sometimes it's good for kids to be pushed past their comfort zone.

Not if they are typically the butt of jokes and one who always gets teased. I've been encouraging, but I won't force her to go.

If this is the case, you should be doing more than skipping outdoor ed.

Anonymous wrote:Kid really doesn't want to go, and I don't blame her.

Has anyone let their kid skip it?

Did you send your kid to school instead or keep them home?

It's boring for students who stay at school. It's typically a catch-up time for the students who stay behind and owe a lot of assignments. Having covered, or subbed, for teachers who are at outdoor ed, I can tell you that class time at school is boring and students can be raucous.

Here's more discussion on Outdoor Ed to help you form your decision:
https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1098728.page

I wouldn't be comfortable sending my kids to outdoor ed. I don't think I would have wanted to go at that age either. I don't get it.

Don’t send her op it’s no big deal

I went in 6th AND 8th. Not sus at all. Graduated in ‘91. We used to go in both grades.

Anonymous wrote:Speaking to the revived post. My kid didn't go. They were not emotionally ready to go so soon into MS and forcing it would have been useless as they are very stubborn.

That said, I didn't push too hard. When I went in 6th grade, a girl was bullied so mercilessly in the cabin that she self-harmed and a lot of other students had to see the aftermath. Then when I went in 8th grade, the adult supervision was sporadic and a bunch of kids got physically injured and had to leave early (including me).

Minus those issues, it was ok, but it wasn't a highlight of my time in MCPS.

6th AND 8th?? Sounds sus.

For many kids, 6th grade can be a bit early to attend.

Speaking to the revived post. My kid didn't go. They were not emotionally ready to go so soon into MS and forcing it would have been useless as they are very stubborn.

That said, I didn't push too hard. When I went in 6th grade, a girl was bullied so mercilessly in the cabin that she self-harmed and a lot of other students had to see the aftermath. Then when I went in 8th grade, the adult supervision was sporadic and a bunch of kids got physically injured and had to leave early (including me).

Minus those issues, it was ok, but it wasn't a highlight of my time in MCPS.

My kid still went to school. Half the grade went the first half of the week and half the grade went the second half, so there were at least some kids in all of his classes, except for science, since that's how they made the split (kids who had Teacher A went first and Teacher B went second). There are always a handful of kids who don't go, so even in his science class there were a couple of kids there and they watched a movie with a sub.

Yes reviving this very old post. What did last year's parents do if your kid didn't end up going to Outdoor Ed?

Np here: I chaperoned Outdoor Ed last year. They needed parents especially at night for the cabins. My daughter and I both had a lot of fun. I found that a change of scenery (Outdoor Ed) brings the kids together. In a good way. We had a few shy/quiet girls in our cabin and we played some games to get everyone involved. ?

As an MCPS grad I still have fond memories of Outdoor Ed as a 6th grader and later as a counselor as a 12th grader. Back then we went for a whole week up to Emmitsburg.

OP: Do what is best for YOUR child. Talk to your child's World Studies tracher for concrete answers about what they would do during the school day. Every MS is different.

Anonymous wrote:

This thread should be preserved as direct evidence of the over parenting of this era. I feel,genuinely sorry for each child whose parents orchestrate their child's life to the level that participation in a school event only occurs if said parent is certain it will be "positive."

I think this attitude is dumb. Do you do everything just because everyone else does it? I hope not and I hope that this isn't what you are teaching your kids.

Outdoor Ed is a field tip, that's it. If a kid is going to have a miserable experience, don't go. If a kid enjoys this type of thing then go. Its very easy. It has nothing to do with over parenting as you accuse the OP or under parenting as others would accuse you.

Yes, happily guilty of under parenting. My kids will learn perseverance and coping skills, imagine that.

Anonymous wrote:My DD has severe anxiety and we pushed as hard as possible for her to go. It was awful to the point of her becoming sick due to the anxiety and having to return home. It makes me sick when I read how judgmental parents are on this forum. You don't know what's going on in other households and what parents are doing. It isn't always helicopter parenting or a parent who isn't trying their damned hardest to get their child to participate.

I was going to say something similar and then saw your reply. My child has significant anxiety and has been suicidal in the past. He is scheduled to go to Outdoor Ed but it's pretty nerve racking for all of us. It's easy to blame parents but you really can't know everything about other people's kids. And as my kid has told me, he is glad that he has parents who were not against medication because he knows that it has been life saving for him. I imagine that this is something similar.