The weather is warm in the ATL today, but it is overcast and cruddy out nonetheless. Last night’s RHOA did little to inspire me to blog today. It looks like next week we will see more discussion about Marlo Hampton and her criminal past. I read her blog today where she talks about her sad childhood. I just can’t be bothered to respond. The other big story here that has been picked up by national media has to do with a homework that two local teachers sent home with their third graders referencing slavery in a way that was without context or explanation and got everyone up in arms. It reminded me of the time when I first began teaching elementary school and we were required to make displays in the hallway for the book of the month each month. That was all fine and dandy until the principal chose the book The Cats in Krasinski Square . It’s a “children’s story” that takes place during WWII. I was teaching seven year olds. It saddened me that I had to even read them the story. The kindergarten teachers had to read it too. It seems to me that we aught to be about to find more age appropriate things to teach our very young children without jumping right in to Hitler in kindergarten, or elementary school at all. So I saw very clearly in my head the “collaborative teaching” meeting that the teachers were forced to attend. In order to appease the administration, the teachers were placed in a room during their planning period and asked to connect the social studies standard (Fredrick Douglass) with the math standard (multiplication and division facts) it’s possible there was a helpful idiot from the district office in there telling them how to meet the directive. So the next thing you know Fredrick Douglass is getting two beatings a day for a week and seven slaves are picking an equal amount of fruit from a tree with 56 apples. I don’t know the teachers involved, their racial background or if they are secretly pro-slavery racists. I do know that the school system who is responsible for this at the district level is likely to leave these two teachers out to dry.
So today, I find myself with nothing fun to write about. Maybe tomorrow I’ll write about some of the filming going on around town. Or maybe I’ll just take another day off. But right now I am going to try to find a fun movie where no one dies at the hands of a monster and no one slashes anyone’s face open.
UPDATE: They are “investigating” the entire third grade team (four teachers). One has now quit under the pressure. This is such a sad thing. They all had to send home the same homework. The homework was made up at the direction of the district to include Fredrick Douglass in math problems. I know the stupidity of teaching in Georgia first hand. Teachers have to do weird stuff all the time at the direction of the district idiots or the principal. I am sure they just shook their heads over this. I told you the district would leave these educators out to dry.
Marlo can SAVE IT!!! My childhood was prob worse than hers, and it's no excuse – period. That slavery/teaching/math problem story left me seething over the weekend – and I can't believe it took so long for the national media to pick it up. SMHHope you find something fun to watch – I did a foreign film marathon on NETFLIX over the holidays … sometimes you need it.
Still waiting to get the "tea" on what happened between Kim and Sweetie.
I watched RHOA today and was left feeling the same way. Just couldn't be bothered to care much.I missed the details of the slavery assignment. I'll have to look that up before I can get upset about it.
Teaching is the best job ever, and the worst job ever all at once. If you are a veteran teacher (read old) the same old ideas are recycled over and over and over. The idea that was last years bad idea becomes the great new thing in a couple of years. Collaborative planning is a constantly recycled idea where you are forced into a room and told that your math standards must be integrated with social studies. Or English must me integrated into math. Or science must have something to do with Physical Education. There are times when it make sense and times when it doesn't. So some teachers in Norcross, GA were told to integrate Fredrick Douglass with math. I admit they did it poorly and with no context for the poor parents who just saw some crazy word problems on their homework assignment. But what the news doesn't tell you is that these teachers didn't just up and decide to try to incorporate slavery into their math problems. THEY ARE FORCED TO! So when it goes all horribly wrong, the district never admits to all that and the teachers are left looking like idiots. Also everyone assumes that the teachers are white and secretly attend KKK meetings after spending tons of their own money on their students who they love dearly. I feel very sorry for these teachers whose year is now ruined. And I guarantee you it is all because some idiot was promoted to a district level and that idiot was sent to tell the classroom teachers they needed to integrate their curriculum in the way the did. It's horrible that now these two teachers are being held out in an awful way. And again everyone jumps to conclusions as to their race. Which has not been disclosed.
Understood. Not a whole lot of motivation today. And the math question thing is effed up! Not much else happening but want to tell you that I LOVE your site and it is in my Favorites very high up! xoxoxo
Your post is not only endearing, funny and informative. You may not feel like blogging, but you did a great job all the same. Yes, I appreciate the extra context; I now have newfound compassion for these teachers.
Aw thanks y'all a little positive feedback on an overcast, glum day does wonders for my mental state. 🙂 Thanks.
I appreciate you because I consider you my friend that makes me cry and laugh. Sometimes both at the same time. But most of all I appreciate you because you gave so much of yourself teaching and being good at it and loving your kids, ALL of them.
Thanks Pam, I appreciate you more than you know!