He Said He Was Holding Back Tears

So today was a big day in our family; it was kindergarten orientation day for my stepson, H.Bomb.  He officially starts at his new school on Monday, a change for him.  He's been in a public school preschool for the past two years that he's loved.  There are some things I wasn't too happy with (the school was being revamped and so kids were expected to focus while the ceilings were being torn down all over the school and they could hear the workmen talking to one another, hammering away and listening to their music.  Because of the renovations, there were two preschool classes of 10 kids each, crammed into one tiny room, divided by a small set of cubbies. Also, he was three and four years old and I'm not certain why he was expected to "focus for 30 mintues or more" on any one activity), but he was happy.

And now, today.  Jason. went with H and his mom to orientation and I called to see how it went, if H was excited.  Jason was so disappointed.  They get art once a week (or week and a half, depending), gym twice a week, library once a week, music once every week and a half and 15 minutes of recess.  Let me just repeat so that you get the full magnitude-- FIVE AND SIX YEAR OLDS GET 15 MINTUES OF RECESS A DAY.  If you've ever met a kindergartener, you probably intuitively know and therefore don't need any of the studies to prove to you, that this is NOT ENOUGH.  But just in case you want some info, just google "why kids need recess" and study up.  There is no shortgage of evidence to prove this one.  They were already talking about SOL prep and testing skills, not developing a love of reading, or writing practice or learning to socialize.  There are no field trips because it's not in the financial budget or the time budget.  There's not enough money to pay for a school bus and not enough time to give up because they have to work to do.  Please understand that I am not criticizing teachers for this, as their hands are often tied.  Rather, the administrations are placing value on the wrong things.  Maybe they've been out of the classroom for too long (or in some case, because they never been in a classroom).  This is filtering into the high schools, where students no longer know how to write essays because all they have to do is take multiple choice tests and into colleges, where students don't know how to take responsibility for their own education and growth.  All of the college professors I know are sorely disappointed in the state of public education.
As a teacher, I see some of the most important work being done on field trips and on the playground.  Kids learn to explore, to make a guess at how something might work and then have their own trial and error to figure it out.  They learn to get along with others and to share.  They learn how to fail and how to get back up again.  They discover the world around them and within them.  I know that we can supplement H's education to try and fill in the gaps that will be left, but it just makes me so sad to know that's how he'll be spending his days. 

New Favorite Blog

One of my most favorite education books ever is Educating Esme, by Esme Codell. It's so cheeky and blunt and reminds me of how I felt about public education when I was a senior in college and doing my student teaching. I was so frustrated with the politics of it all, particularly with the school system I student taught in. There was very little support and instead of uplifting and caring for one another, the teachers were catty, gossipy and competitive. It was a horrible environment to work in and I'm just thankful I never had to be a student there. All of that lead me to apply in alternative education systems and I fortunately ended up at Community School.
Anyway, I've always loved Educating Esme and have read and recommended several of Esme's others books to my student. In fact, I read Sahara Special to my class every year and they always lovelovelove it. Sahara has become like one of my own students; I aspire to be more like Ms. Pointy. She wrote an amazing book for parents and teachers that catalogs a bajillion books for kids and it's awesome. I was fortunate enough that when Esme came to Roanoke College a few years ago for the Margaret Sue Copenhaver Institute, I was able to meet and talk with her. You know the way some people get about meeting musicians or stars? That's how I get with authors. I get all geeky and I talk too fast and in general, show my nerdiness. This year, they are reissuing Educating Esme, with all kinds of new additions and a foreward written by another favorite author, Katherine Paterson. I'll probably buy another copy, just because. To go along with the new book, Esme has a new blog! Even though I'm technically not an elementary school teacher, I'll be a regular reader. Check it out!