Well, Loyal Readers, I have to say that my son (12 years old) has done something I never thought possible - he totally embarrassed me and made me incredibly proud in the same moment.
Let me explain.
I consider one of the best things about having cable is that they have the music channels. That means I can be-bop to "Love Shack" and about a zikillion other 80's songs anytime I want. Life is good. ("The looooooove Shack is a little ....") Oh no, wait. Sorry. Got lost for a moment. I'm back now.
So I am in my room (thinking the kids are in bed), be-bopping along, singing, dancing, reliving my teenage years and not really paying attention to what was playing.
Suddenly, a quiet voice says, "Mom, should you really be listening to that?" And I whirl around to see my son in the doorway. He had gotten up to tell me something else, but stumbled onto my little singing and dancing number.
The song, you ask?
"I Want Your Sex" by George Michael. Yeah. That's the embarassing part.
But I was also very proud of my son. First, because he thinks that way. Second, because he had the courage to (respectfully) voice his concern/opinion. And third, because he was right.
I immediately turned off the television and hugged my son and told him how proud I was and that he was right. I thanked him for being honest with me and speaking up.
I guess, maybe, I am doing something right.
Showing posts with label parenting. Show all posts
Showing posts with label parenting. Show all posts
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Homeschooling and resources for special needs children
This topic recently came up on a message board I am on.
For the purpose of this post, the term "special needs" can refer to anything from ADD to autism and anything in between.
How do you homeschool if you have a special needs child?
Sometimes (as in the case of an ADD or ADHD child), homeschooling can be the perfect way to alleviate the hardship kids suffer in a traditional school setting.
But what if your child needs professional resources in addition to homeschooling?
Laws vary from state to state, but most of the time homeschoolers can use the resources offered by the school district/county to help with a special needs child (at little or no cost).
However, some homeschoolers want nothing to do with the governmental system. Period. And they prefer to use a private doctor/therapist/program.
Both have their pros and cons. Do your research and do what you feel comfortable doing.
The important thing is to make sure your kids get whatever help they need.
For the purpose of this post, the term "special needs" can refer to anything from ADD to autism and anything in between.
How do you homeschool if you have a special needs child?
Sometimes (as in the case of an ADD or ADHD child), homeschooling can be the perfect way to alleviate the hardship kids suffer in a traditional school setting.
But what if your child needs professional resources in addition to homeschooling?
Laws vary from state to state, but most of the time homeschoolers can use the resources offered by the school district/county to help with a special needs child (at little or no cost).
However, some homeschoolers want nothing to do with the governmental system. Period. And they prefer to use a private doctor/therapist/program.
Both have their pros and cons. Do your research and do what you feel comfortable doing.
The important thing is to make sure your kids get whatever help they need.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Hilarious school answering machine message
I got this from my online friend's blog. You can visit her blog at http://www.mercedesrules.wordpress.com/
California staff voted unanimously to record on their school telephone answering machine This is the actual answering machine message for the school. This came about because they implemented a policy requiring students and parents to be responsible for their children’s absences and missing homework. The school and teachers are being sued by parents who want their children’s failing grades changed to passing grades - even though those children were absent 15-30 times during the semester and did not complete enough schoolwork to pass their classes. The outgoing message:
“Hello! You have reached the automated answering service of your school. In order to assist you in connecting to the right staff member, please listen to all the options before making a selection:
To lie about why your child is absent - Press 1
To make excuses for why your child did not do his work-Press 2
To complain about what we do - Press 3
To swear at staff members - Press 4
To ask why you didn’t get information that was already enclosed in your newsletter and several flyers mailed to you - Press 5
If you want us to raise your child - Press 6
If you want to reach out and touch, slap or hit someone -Press 7
To request another teacher, for the third time this year -Press 8
To complain about bus transportation - Press 9
To complain about school lunches - Press 0
If you realize this is the real world and your child must be accountable and responsible for his/her own behavior, class work, homework and that it’s not the teachers’ fault for your child’s lack of effort: Hang up and have a nice day!
If you want this in Spanish, you must be in the wrong country.”
California staff voted unanimously to record on their school telephone answering machine This is the actual answering machine message for the school. This came about because they implemented a policy requiring students and parents to be responsible for their children’s absences and missing homework. The school and teachers are being sued by parents who want their children’s failing grades changed to passing grades - even though those children were absent 15-30 times during the semester and did not complete enough schoolwork to pass their classes. The outgoing message:
“Hello! You have reached the automated answering service of your school. In order to assist you in connecting to the right staff member, please listen to all the options before making a selection:
To lie about why your child is absent - Press 1
To make excuses for why your child did not do his work-Press 2
To complain about what we do - Press 3
To swear at staff members - Press 4
To ask why you didn’t get information that was already enclosed in your newsletter and several flyers mailed to you - Press 5
If you want us to raise your child - Press 6
If you want to reach out and touch, slap or hit someone -Press 7
To request another teacher, for the third time this year -Press 8
To complain about bus transportation - Press 9
To complain about school lunches - Press 0
If you realize this is the real world and your child must be accountable and responsible for his/her own behavior, class work, homework and that it’s not the teachers’ fault for your child’s lack of effort: Hang up and have a nice day!
If you want this in Spanish, you must be in the wrong country.”
Friday, November 16, 2007
"Miss Suzy Homemaker" I am not.....
Today, I realized that housekeeping is not my talent.
Yeah, I know that I should have realized this a while back, but I am a little slow these days.
As I was dusting furniture this morning, my oldest son walked in and asked, "Is someone coming over?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Because you are dusting. Like moving stuff around and dusting underneath, too." It didn't help that this was said with a bit of a wide-eyed surprised look, either.
To complete my humiliation, I finally admitted that, yes, someone was coming over and that is why I was dusting.
Another clue should have been our pre-dinner ritual. Someone (usually my hubby or my oldest son) would cover the smoke detector with a dish towel before I would start cooking. This ritual was suggested by my oldest son when the smoke detector would prompt "Dinner's ready!" being announced by the kids and bring kids running to the dinner table. (The kids were bewildered as to why this assumption would bother me.)
(There was another concern I had - what if the smoke alarm went off during the night?? The kids were so used to it that if it went off at 2 in the morning, they would just wonder why I was cooking at such an odd hour.)
Okay, back to my non-Suzy-Homemaker-ness.
My home, to put it nicely, has always looked "lived in." It is clean, but not looking like a model home. (Somehow having 4 kids does that. I dunno.)
Oh yeah. To complete my humiliation, when Hubby came home from work, he looked around (wide-eyed) and asked, "Is someone coming over?"
Yeah, I know that I should have realized this a while back, but I am a little slow these days.
As I was dusting furniture this morning, my oldest son walked in and asked, "Is someone coming over?"
"Why do you ask?"
"Because you are dusting. Like moving stuff around and dusting underneath, too." It didn't help that this was said with a bit of a wide-eyed surprised look, either.
To complete my humiliation, I finally admitted that, yes, someone was coming over and that is why I was dusting.
Another clue should have been our pre-dinner ritual. Someone (usually my hubby or my oldest son) would cover the smoke detector with a dish towel before I would start cooking. This ritual was suggested by my oldest son when the smoke detector would prompt "Dinner's ready!" being announced by the kids and bring kids running to the dinner table. (The kids were bewildered as to why this assumption would bother me.)
(There was another concern I had - what if the smoke alarm went off during the night?? The kids were so used to it that if it went off at 2 in the morning, they would just wonder why I was cooking at such an odd hour.)
Okay, back to my non-Suzy-Homemaker-ness.
My home, to put it nicely, has always looked "lived in." It is clean, but not looking like a model home. (Somehow having 4 kids does that. I dunno.)
Oh yeah. To complete my humiliation, when Hubby came home from work, he looked around (wide-eyed) and asked, "Is someone coming over?"
Wednesday, November 7, 2007
The Holidays - Homeschooling Style
Only 2 weeks until Thanksgiving! Where has the time gone?
I love homeschooling during the holidays! We can take an extra day off (which we are) and we are taking 3 weeks off for Christmas! Hooray! We will also have a Thanksgiving party AND a Christmas party for "school". I am so excited!! We are using the time before Christmas to make presents and get things ready for everyone.
In my opinion, these are the things the kids will remember most - the fun memories we make together. These are the things that are important - spending time together.
They may never use the Geometry or Algebra they learn, but they will always look back on these memories fondly. Best of all, I am not having to hear about how they celebrated Christmas in school. I will be a part of the celebration.
And I love that. :o)
I love homeschooling during the holidays! We can take an extra day off (which we are) and we are taking 3 weeks off for Christmas! Hooray! We will also have a Thanksgiving party AND a Christmas party for "school". I am so excited!! We are using the time before Christmas to make presents and get things ready for everyone.
In my opinion, these are the things the kids will remember most - the fun memories we make together. These are the things that are important - spending time together.
They may never use the Geometry or Algebra they learn, but they will always look back on these memories fondly. Best of all, I am not having to hear about how they celebrated Christmas in school. I will be a part of the celebration.
And I love that. :o)
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