I heard about the Random Picture Challenge over at The Miss Elaine-ous Life and when I saw what the 5th picture from the end was in my March 2008 picture folder... I just had to join in! :)
This is a picture of Jeff joining in on one of our Unplugged Projects - Shiny.
For more random pictures, visit 4 Little Men & Girly Twins.
Well, Jeff and I met with Mrs. B, the current teacher in Will's class.
Unfortunately she was quite pleasant. :) I was hoping she would be rude to make my decision easier! LOL!
The first thing that we mentioned to her is that we realize what a difficult situation she has been put in and that we understand that it must be very challenging to her. We told her that we were not there to point fingers; that we just had concerns that needed to be expressed and to also get her side of the story. We wanted to make sure she was not guarded in her answers - especially since we knew she had four other conferences scheduled for the same week! Bless her heart.
It was obvious that she was new to the work-force and admitted that kindergarten is different and more challenging than the 3rd graders she had worked with in the past. I think she is aware of the challenges and trying to compensate for them.
She used the word "adjustment" several times in our conversation. Everyone is still adjusting, but she said she really feels like the kids are starting to realize that she's going to be staying (until Mrs. P returns). She said that the card pulling is slowing down as the children are becoming more comfortable with her.
I showed her the difference in the number of cards pulled between her and Mrs. P. There were occasional cards pulled with Mrs. P. That really let me know when Will had had a particularly bad day. When he's coming home with 2 - 3 cards pulled DAILY, the only thing I can think is that he is consistently having bad days and being terribly disruptive.
She told us that Will is by no means the most disruptive in the class... there are at least four others ahead of him. (I was hoping for a bigger number, but at least it's not lower!) She said he is a sweet boy and that she can tell he is "coming around".
I asked how she thought he was doing academically; she said he was doing just fine, right on track, and would put him in the top percentage of the class. I then asked if she thought he was board or not being challenged enough and she said he probably was. She also said that he will probably be asked to attend the school for gifted children next year.
I also brought up positive-reinforcement. Since he's had a card pulled practically everyday for two months, he hasn't been to the treasure box. She kind of smiled and said, "No one really has. There are only about four kids that consistently go to the treasure box." (I'm not really excited about that answer.)
She said that she has started a new chart for positive reinforcement. When the kids are "caught doing something good" they get a sticker on their chart. The collected stickers will help them get to the treasure box. She said Will has about five stickers currently.
She also said something about "bribing" them with a special snack if they are good. I don't really remember what the specifics were to this...
Overall, I really think she is trying to do a good job and has a good attitude towards Will. After talking with Will as well, I think he is ok with her, too.
I think (hope) that the roughest part of the transition period is over and that every thing will even out.
HOWEVER...
All this thinking about homeschooling has really sparked something in me and when I nonchalantly asked Will what he would think about having school at home and mommy be the teacher; his face LIT UP, he clapped his hands and said, "YES! That sounds like a great idea!"
I truly think Will is board and acting out in school because nothing is holding his attention well enough. Mrs. B let on that there are kids in his class that still don't know their color sight words. Will knew them when he entered kindergarten and I am sure there other topics that he is just sitting there waiting on some of the other kids to catch up. That's got to be frustrating for him.
Now, I think homeschooling is turning out to be more of a personal choice instead of being a necessity to get him out of a bad situation.
The decision has not been made though. I am still educating myself on homeschooling and watching for improvement from the school. (There was a problem just yesterday where the teachers were not communicating with each other and it could have landed Will in In School Suspension if I hadn't stepped in. Let me tell you... I was one ticked-off mama!)
Today I meet with a homeschooling friend that also works with the school system regarding gifted children. She has been very inspiring to me and I look forward to gaining knowledge from her about homeschooling and about Will from a gifted stand-point.
If you haven't noticed by now, I do not make quick decisions. I take my time. I really take my time... to the point of it aggravating some people (seriously). This is constantly in my thoughts and in my prayers. I want to make a good, educated decision. Please pray for us during this decision making time.
Thanks so much for being here, for reading my ramblings, and offering opinions and advice! I love my bloggy-buddies! :)
P.S. Sorry for any grammatical errors - no time to reread! :)
There have been quite a few posts here about the trouble Will is having at school. Here's a run-down of what's going on...
Will's original teacher, Mrs. P, is on leave for cancer treatments. She is not expected back until April 1st at the earliest. Her leave started during the Thanksgiving holidays. The two weeks after the Thanksgiving holiday his class had a substitute that a friend of mine called a boot-camp kindergarten teacher. It was a rough couple of weeks; Will spent the whole time on yellow or orange.
Then there was winter break. That was a great 14 days for us. We all worked together, enjoyed each others' company, and accomplished things together. I truly loved having all three boys home at the same time and not having a rigid schedule to follow. I felt like a good parent and LOVED IT!
After winter break, there was a three day school week with a different substitute. I'm not really sure, but I think this was a very lax week as I remember Will saying they got to play a lot.
The following Monday, there was yet ANOTHER substitute, Mrs. B. She is a certified teacher (but new to the work-force) and will be remaining in Will's class until Mrs. P. returns. She has been teaching his class for two weeks now. The majority of his days ended on orange or red; although he's been on yellow the last two days, thankfully. I don't know if it's him or if the teacher is super-strict or if it's just a transition period. Jeff and I requested a meeting with his teacher and that will be tomorrow.
Jeff and I met with the principal last week to express our concerns. Although it was good to talk with him, nothing is resolvable at this time and the situation is still very real. Jeff and I both feel that the school and teachers have done everything they possibly can to make the transition easy for the kids, but there has just been SO MUCH transitioning.
Will has more than once said that he wonders who his next teacher will be. He has cried a few days that he doesn't want to go to school. He has said that he follows Mrs. P's rules and shouldn't be getting in trouble for the things he is doing. It has been a rough couple of months!
I've also received a phone call on two different occasions from the PE teacher and then today the reading instructor walked Will out to the car to let me know he has been out-right defiant the last two days. His behavior is not acceptable, but this is just so unlike him.
I've talked with another mother from Will's class and she says that her child is having the same issues. This mother also says that she's spoken with another mother who's child is also struggling.
There's so much to this that I don't even have the time to write it out. There is so much spinning in my head going back and forth about what to do.
In the end, I am not satisfied with the amount of cards being pulled on Will - some of them being pulled for what I would consider normal 6 year old behavior. As a result, Will has not had any positive reinforcement from his teachers in two months. There have been days that I didn't want to send him to school because I didn't want him to feel like he was in trouble all the time. In fact, this past Friday, I did keep him out; I told him he could have a "vacation day". It was time for him to just have some FUN and RELAX.
You know something needs to change when you don't want to send your child to school anymore.
I am seriously considering pulling him out for the remainder of the school year and homeschooling. I feel like I would be able to give him a more consistent, understanding environment. I certainly feel competent enough to teach him what he needs to learn in order to be ready for 1st grade. At this time, my intention would be to return him to public school next year... unless we all absolutely love homeschooling.
There is a part of me that really wants to do this. I cannot express how much I actually enjoyed our winter break together. Having a task, working on it together, and accomplishing it. I don't remember a time that I have enjoyed more with just the boys and me at home.
Before you question about socialization... let me just say that Will is the most social 6 year old boy I know. He strikes up conversations with strangers, feels completely confident talking with adults, and getting rough-n-tumble with kids. We attend church three times a week, he'll be playing soccer in the spring, and he's showing an interest in learning to play the piano (another post in itself). Then of course, there are homeschooling co-ops and such. I seriously don't think socialization is an issue - even if we decide to homeschool for a few years.
The down-side to pulling Will out of school is that he won't be with his friends daily. He also won't be there when Mrs. P returns. I think that although there will be yet another transition back to her, in the end it would be a positive note to finalize the year. The kids just adore her. Another down-side is that I won't have even less time to myself... which is totally selfish, but a reality I need to consider.
Like I said... there are so many thoughts in my head. Pros and cons to both sides. Too much to list right now, so I'll leave it to you:
If you are a homeschooler, what were your reasons for choosing homeschooling? What do see as pros and cons to homeschooling? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
If you send your kids to school, what are your thoughts about homeschooling? Have you ever considered it and why did you choose not to do it?
I'm just a mess about this whole situation. I'm heart-broken for Will, disappointed in his behavior, irritated and the whole situation, and just really don't know what to do... please pray that Jeff and I will have the wisdom to make the right choice for our son and our family.
Thanks.
