Aloha Friday...save our schools

In Hawaii, Aloha Friday is the day they take it easy, and look forward to the weekend.

So I thought that on Fridays I would and take it easy on the posting,as they do in Hawaii! Therefore, I’ll ask a simple question for you to answer. Nothing that requires a lengthy response.

Oh, and don't forget to hean on over to Kailani and link up with the rest of us!

You will make some new bloggy friends too!!

My Question is:

What do you think of the education system in the United States?

In my opinion, the education system is seriously lacking in the U.S.  Not because we don't have outstanding teachers and excellent schools...but because we are not supported and funded like we should be by the states. 

Schools should be the LAST thing effected by this economy...to read more about my feelings on this topic...{click here}

I would love to hear your opinions on what we can do to ensure that our children, the next generations, our countries next decision makers...

are protected and receive the funding they SO deserve!!

WARNING: This post is a political venting session...

It is not very often that I will write about something political...it just doesn't usually tickle my fancy to do so.  Well this topic doesn't just tickle my fancy...it's pissing my fancy off!!

I understand that we are in a economical crisis...and being in California...we are really feeling the effects of it.  With that being said, there is still a lot of money that is going to the banks ($700 billion) and all the money going to the health care reform (which in my opinion we aren't going to notice anything from)...what about the schools???  Where does education fall into the priority list????

How is it that in the US...there is so little value put on education?  The last thing that should be touched by the economy is the schools!  Doesn't everyone realize that this is the next generation...these are the people that will be running our country in the near future!!  Or do they not care because by that time, they won't be around anymore?

We live in a small town and being that I am blessed to work from home, I am able to volunteer at the school in my girls' classes a lot.  I know all the teachers, principal, etc.  Not to mention, I went to this school when I was a little girl.

Walking my girls up to the school yesterday, there were big signs in front of the school that said..."SAVE OUR SCHOOLS"...they are going to be laying off 26% of the teachers in our school district.  It made me sick to see this!

What does that mean for our children and our schools...the classrooms are now going to go 30 kids to 1 teacher!!! 

Now tell me how this makes sense...our prisoners can get a FULL college education (on our dime), they can get a HEART TRANSPLANT (on our dime), the can receive a SEX CHANGE OPERATION (on our dime)...and we can't find enough money to keep our schools open!!  What the hell is wrong with this picture? 

It has always been said that the United States is the most powerful country...guess what guys???  The other countries out there are a lot SMARTER...they put a HUGE value on their education systems!! 

The schools should be the LAST thing touched!  The teachers should be a lot higher paid!!!  Maybe the politicians salaries could be cut to the same salary that the teachers make...and give all that extra money to the schools!!!  How is it that our society has come to a point where our education system is so low on the priority list??  Our teachers, our educators, our next generations are the ones that should be protected ESPECIALLY in an economy such as this.

There...I did it!  I got it all out and I feel much better.  Whether you agree or disagree...this is just my opinion.  I don't want the people in the prisons to suffer but I also don't think they deserve more priviledges than our own children.

Have a happy Friday!

A bomb at school...

A mom can truly never rest...the girls and I went through our normal routine today and were off to school.  They looked adorable as usual, but then I am pretty partial.

Every morning I walk the girls up instead of kicking them out on the curbside...they are only in 1st grade. 

This morning, however when I was walking Erynn to her class...one of the little boys came walking up and talking to me.  They all know me because I volunteer in each of the girls' classes once a week.  He said..

"I have a bomb in my pocket." as he is wearing one of those big black, long coats.  It was obvious that there was a large bulk in one of his pockets and not the other. 

I said to him, "You can't say things like that.  If you say things like that, the cops will come and you will be sent to the office.  That's pretty serious."  His eyes got big and that was that.  I mentioned it to the teacher before leaving to make sure that he talked to him about saying things like that at school.

You would think that it would be all over with, however as I was driving away from the school I thought to myself, what if he really did have some sort of a bomb in his pocket and is in the classroom with my daughter.  Of course you want to give him the benefit of the doubt that he is kidding, but what if?

I drove away and thought I wonder if at any time during these school shootings or bombings...did the perpetrator jokingly say something to the kids..." I have a gun in my pocket" and they just brush it off not believing him.  These are the kind of things that are going through my mind.

So now I sit at home still wondering if I should call the teacher, just to confirm for my mom heart that the big bulky thing that was very obviously sticking out of his pocket was not a bomb.

What to do?...how sad that this is my worry today.

Mom Guilt...

My girls are 6 years old and have started 1st Grade in September.  I had this fabulous idea that I was going to split them up this year.  We found that in Kindergarten we wanted them to be together because this was their first big venture into school and they truly are each others comfort.  What I found was that they actually had challenges that a child without their sibling in the same class would not have.  For example, when they would come home, instead of hearing how math went or coloring...I would hear that "sister played with MacKenzie and MacKenzie didn't want to play with me."  I have always told my girls that they don't have to have the same friends...but their friends do have to be nice to their sister.  And this was a challenge that I didn't think my girls needed and was probably going to get a lot worse as they got older if I kept them in the same class.
So this year, we decided to go with separate teachers.  On the first day, my girls loved it.  I was a little concerned however, and I say this as humble as I can, but my girls are very advanced.  I owe that to being able to stay at home with them for the first 3 years of their lives.  But an example is that when they were starting Kindergarten, they were already reading chapter books on their own.  They were later tested in Kindergarten to find out they were reading at close to a 3rd grade level.  They were able to add double digit numbers in their heads, etc.  So going in to first grade was hard for me because I actually had to sit down the their Kindergarten teacher at the end of the year with the discussion of letting them skip 1st and go straight in to 2nd.  I did see value in that, however their group of students they're in school with is SUCH a great group of kids, with excellent, very involved parents, that I decided to let them stay in 1st.  Also, to think that they could be on the lower end of 2nd grade and the top end of 1st grade, I would rather that.  There were many things to take in to consideration in making this decision...and as a mom, you hope it will be the right one and they won't need therapy later on because of it.
So they started school and I knew just from the "Back to school" night that Erynn's teacher was definitely going to challenger her, but more importantly he identified right away how bright she was.  Emilie's teacher on the other hand had not, Concern#1.  When talking to Emilie's teacher after "Back to school" night to find out how she is going to challenge Emilie, she really didn't know and was having Emilie read and participate at the rest of the classes level, Concern #2.
After talking to a couple of parents whom I trust, who have had their children with the same teach as Emilie, I learned very quickly that this was going to be a hyped up Kindergarten and now I was slightly freaking out!  What the heck was I gonna do...either have Emilie go in to the same class as Erynn and have to put up with the challenges that would bring.  Or to have her go in to another class.  I started talking to older parents about the other teachers and learned that there was one particular teacher who would do very well with Emilie being advanced and had extra room in her class. 
That day I went to talk to the principal and she and I have been friends for years so I felt comfortable with coming to her about this.  She totally understood and was going to look in to it.
During the time that she looked in to it, I volunteered in Emilie's class and that was all it took to go from asking to have her switched to telling them that I needed her to be switched.  Don't get me wrong, we absolutely LOVE the other teacher.  She is the nicest person and was so good to Emilie.  However she cannot control the level that the kids are at in her class and Emilie was way way advanced compared to all the other kids.  Her teacher totally understood where we were coming from.
So a month in to school, Emilie switches classes and I have started volunteering in that class.  I feel much better about this class.  There are two other kids in the class that are closer to Emilie's reading level and I think she is being challenged...at least a little more than she was.  I make sure to continue challenging her at home and making sure that she is not getting bored. 
The reason for my writing about this today is because today is the first parent teacher conferences...I am about to go to them.  I am excited to hear what Emilie's teacher has to say about her.  And what I have learned by volunteering in each girls class once a week is that Erynn's teacher is seriously one of the best teachers I have ever seen.   So here comes the mom guilt...is this going to continue all the way up because honestly, as moms we put enough pressure on ourselves to then add this.  My guilt is that one of my girls might be getting a better education than the other one.  I see the long term effects and keep let my mind snowball.  :)  We may be looking at private school by 4th grade...we'll see.
Have a great day!

Thanking God...

Every single day when I am dropping my kids off at school, I thank God.  I thank God for my wonderful, beautiful, heathly precious girls.  And I also thank God that I have such a wonderful stay at home job that I don't have to fight the long car line of moms and dads waiting to get close enough to the school to kick their kids out as close to the curb as they can so they can make it to work on time.  Everyone is always running late and in such a hurry and a rush.
Let me share with you how my morning goes...I set my alarm in the morning to wake my girls up.  I get them up and we have a very relaxed and calm morning going through the morning routine.  Now not always is it relaxing and wonderful and I can't wait to write about those days as they come...but for this morning, very relaxed. 
I take them to school and instead of fighting that long line of cars that are killing each other to be first in line...we park a small distance away from the school and walk up.  I am blessed to walk both of my girls to class, talk to the teachers and see how they are, go to the office and see how the principal and the office staff's morning is going and then go back to my car after all is settled in their classes and ready for the day.
It's at the moments when I am walking back through the halls on my way to my car that I thank God for this wonderful business that I am so blessed to be a part of that has given this freedom with my family. 
I volunteer in their classes once a week, have never missed a fieldtrip, drop them off, pick them up and get to know all of their friends and their friends' parents.  There is no amount of money that could pay for what I get every single day with my sweet little twin blessings from God.   To find out more about what I do to work from home with my precisou girls...please go here.
Have a blessed day!