My Kid is Not a Number

I preface this post by saying that when you are done reading, I want you to ask yourself,what kinds of interactions you have had with a school? How did they make you feel and what did you walk away knowing? Can you draw a vivid picture of your child while they are at school or do you simply know how they rank among other kids in the nation or their class. As a parent, I feel that we need to be involved and let schools know that although the national education system forces teachers to chase and figure out new expectations and requirements and pushes for our kids to be identified by numbers, that we want then described in adjectives and verbs.... And now to my post!

Have you ever walked away from a parent teacher conference, a school meeting, an appointment and felt like your child was simply a number? Well, I have decided that it has to change for my family.

When I sit down at a parent teacher conference and get "Your child scored_____ on the state assessment, NWEA MAP test, DIBELS test, I vow to say," And what does that show? or "And how does this score tell me about who my child is and what happens behind these doors from 8:25-3:15?"

When they show me their grades, I don't really care. Tell me, "What you know about my child. Describe my child, his/her attitude, energy, interactions etc." 

When I get slammed in the face with " I need to get _____ Accellerated Reader points as my kids walk in the house." I vow to say, " Read, and if you meet the goal set for your grade level- wonderful, but what is your goal? What do you want to read? "

When I sit in an Individualized Education Plan (IEP) meeting and hear this score and that score on an assessment I vow to say, " What does that mean or how does that impact PE, Music, lunch, recess, multi-step problems, group work, comprehension, etc." Or a goal written as" He will display proper stress management skills on 8 of 10 occurances as tallied by _____ on 4 out of 5 days" I will call, " Bull Sh**". No one knows exactly when my children are stressed or anxious. No one is actually tallying the number of occurances. I really don't care what the number is, I will say, "How will that look, what is the plan to get to reduced stress and anxiety."

When I am told that so and so was not aware of this need or that, or that they don't rememebr that being discussed at a meeting, I will call out, " My kid is not a number! S/he is entrusted to you for 7 hours a day. It is your responsibility!"

When I want to know how much lunch money is left in the lunch account, what my students grades are, how many days they have been tardy or absent or to send an email to their teacher, I have to pull up one more number to log into a system.  I will send notes and expect responses.

When I call the school and get sent to so and so's voicemail extension, I understand, they have minutes to teach and have to count all of them. They can't be interrupted ( I really do understand not interrupting) but how many minutes, hours days do I and my child need to wait to get an answer? Teaching comes first.. oh, wait, or is it testing or teaching to a test?

In a world where a number or a collection of numbers define who our kids are and what they can and cannot do, I ask, is there really any meaning, are we teaching, learning, or just trying to jump through a hoop. I am tired of impersonal education. What happened to a note, a call.... I'd even take an email or a text. 

We teach English, perhaps we should go back and be descriptive, paint a picture with words as to who each child is, make it vivid, colorful, meaningful and exciting. Start with an opening statement and elaborate. Then wrap it up with a conclusion summarizing what was discussed/ shared using just as explicit vocabulary as in the conversation. Then, maybe just then, parents will start the journey back to the school. Maybe then they will want to be active, attend meetings, conferences, events. May then, school will become a welcome friendly place to be for kids as well as families.

Eat This....

The new Healthy and Hunger Free Kids Act

that has brought forth several school breakfast and lunch meal plan changes nationwide and has also started a lot of dialogue. It appears that one hand is promoting "calories in and calories out" and the other hand on the same body is dictating a national diet. There has to be a balance between exercise, nutritional meal that fit the needs of the individual and academics. Both nutrition and activity are needed to learn!

With all the changes in the meal patterns for schools who participate in the federal school lunch program there is a lot of misinformation floating around. This newsletter will help calrify the differences.

Full comparison of the old and new nutritional standards.

I live in a strong agricultural state. We believe in our products and want to see them utilized in our school food programs. We have kids that are active and some that are not. We still have physical education in our state, but we also have high academic expectations that if we aren't careful could minimize the amount of activity our kids get throughout the day. The new standards place limits on calories and proteins, dictate how much of the breads can be non- whole grain and require students to take a specific amount of fruits and veggies. It sounds ok from the outside to many, but there are some HUGE challenges with the new plan. The biggest of MY concerns is that many kids are hungry shortly after finishing lunch. The calorie limits are ok for a few, but not enough to sustain most throughout the remainder of the day. If students are active and involved in before or afterschool extra- curricular activities they need more than what is currently being provided. Students may not get an opportunity to eat until after 6pm and then gorge themselves or come home from school and grab whatever they can. When possible students are also leaving school at lunch and heading to the local stores to purchase foods to fill themselves up. Almost all of it being junkfood!

I will be the first to say that I think schools have had to pick up a large portion of things that used to be done at home and that the school really is not to blame for these new stadards. They are working the best they can to make the most of the guidelines in quantity and quality. To some extent their hands are tied, but their voices do not have to be muffled. I will also say that a nutrition program will NEVER meet the needs of all our kids, but it has to be better than what it has been turned into. For some of the students in our schools, lunch (and sometimes breakfast) is the only "meal" they receive. I will also share that I HATE the limits on calories and protein. I LOVE the increase in fruits and veggie option (whole grain as well), but hate that they have to take a specified amount and that a large amount is being thrown away.

Interestingly enough, many kids didn't eat healthy under the old plan and still aren't with the new. Kids used to be able to get by with milk, croutons, and shredded cheese. Now they can pass with milk, a serving of veggie or fruit (which can be thrown away), whole-grain croutons, and shredded cheese. The only difference is their lack of ability to go back for seconds of cheese and croutons in this situation, or milk, breads and proteins in the general sense. We just have more being thrown away and kids that are still not eating balanced meals and/ or leaving with full bellies and are not able to perform to the best of their ability.

Here is a parady video that helps exemplify some of the results of the new meal plan implementation.
"We Are Hungry" Youtube video created by a school or group in Kansas to express the need to amend the new standards and share some of the impact of the ones recently inacted.

I have been fortunate enough to spend time in several different capacities in numerous schools partaking in school lunch on a regular basis, as well as be a "hot lunch kid" growning up. I didn't have the option to pack a lunch when I was in school and as an adult in the schools and as mom, I love the convienence of school lunch.

Sensible School Lunches on Facebook is a resource with lunch ideas, up to date information and dialogue. It is worth checking out and "liking"! It helps me keep up to speed with ideas for snack, packing lunches when needed and what is happening with the new nutrition standards that are part of the Healthy Hunger Free Kids Act.

A lot of the hussle and bussle regarding this Act comes from kids, parents and those working in the schools. But even state leaders in agriculture care about good nutrition and a student's ability to perform in school. They know that kids need certain nutritional components and quantities that are different than what is allowable currently. Ag Commissioner, Doug Goehring, urged leaders from all 50 states to oppose the guidelines. Click here to read the press release regarding this action.

Change is never easy and I work to not jump on a bandwagon for or against anything, but when I am not happy after waiting for a while I look for a way to make things better. Below is a link to Wag'n Tales where one mom ran out of answers about the change in the lunch program for her son so they asked someone who should know, the US Secretary of Agriculture.

A 10-year old's letter to Secretary of Agriculture, Tom Vilsack, about school lunch.

If you want to share your insight, questions, comments and concerns regarding the new meal patterns please do so. No voice is too big or too small to make a difference!

To make your voice heard contact:
Undersecretary of Food & Nutrition Services
Kevin Concannon
1400 Independence Ave., SW
Washington, D.C. 20250
or
Secretary of Agriculture
Tom Vilsack
1400 Independence Ave., SW
Washington, D.C. 20250

Here are a few pictures of notes and drawings students have done to share their thoughts about the new meal patterns for school lunch.

** Frame 1: students go through lunch line. Frame 2: go to their cars. Frame 3: drive to gas station and go in. Frame 4: Come out of station with snacks and soda. Frame 5: People tell the lunch ladies that they hate the school food and the lunch ladies are sad.

"This lunch is Bulls*** I don't get enough food and I don't have enough time to go home and have a good meal."

"I do not believe the school lunch program is a good thing. Students with their own money can walk up town and get their own meal. The school's lunch doesn't taste very good, and there isn't very large amounts. For people with a larger appetite such as myself, I believe people who need to eat more, deserve more to eat. Some people go through the day hungry because of the small portions of food. And why limit what we can eat, when there are large amounts of leftovers being thrown into the trash and going to waste, If I didn't live the distance from school as I do now, I would go home and eat so I could feel full and not hungry and miserable. There is no point in limiting our hot lunch when after school we can stuff our faces at home. The program should be tossed out and the school board should listen to what the students want and what will fill them up and not be hungry."


We all have an opinion and want what is best. Share your thoughts and let others know that hungry kids are not happy kids. Therefore their parents, siblings,teachers and all others are not either! We want kids to know and practice good eating and exercise habits for lifelong well-being! Please let those who can make a difference know that you care! THANKS!

Fighting for My Kids' Success

My kids give me so much! They give me joy, smiles, lessons on life, perspective, headaches, backaches, exhaustion, motivation and love to name a few things. They keep me going each and every day!

Having four kids, literally keeps me on my feet from the moment the alarm goes off to well past the news most nights. Now that school is in full swing the balancing act of keeping the younger kids busy and happy while helping with the older ones with homework is wearing me out. Some nights it is a 3-4 hours process. I know that it can be a challenge for most families, but I am finding that doing this with children who have special needs (one with multiple challenges) is even more of a challenge. Many days these study sessions leave me tearful because my kids work so hard for so long each day. They keep chugging along even though they may be worn out and not sure why they have to keep going. I get tearful because I wonder what they are missing out on while working so hard to finish and meet the expectations of those around them, but also because if we can make it through the next several years that they will have a work ethic that not everyone will graduate from school with. They will know what they need to be successful and how to go about doing it in a manner that works for them. Thus being said, I fight for my kids for my kids success each day!!

When they are at school (and youngest at daycare), I take school notes, worksheets and other assignments and transform them into materials and activities that will be usable for them to study from for tests and ultimately learn the material so that they can answer the questions on upcoming assignments, tests and state assessments. I spend time analyzing papers they bring home to look for strengths and weaknesses, I read about their disability areas and watch videos. I brain storm methods to assist them in getting along with their peers and ways to problem solve. I dig and dig and dig and hope that my efforts, desire to understand them better will help them in the long run.
This article is one that documents the the outcome of student struggles in schools, when supported and programmed for well by loving, caring, well educated and able professionals.
I also spend time thinking about how to give the kids opportunities to enjoy and build upon their strengths. I try to think about what they can give up in order to gain happinesss from things that come naturally to them. I also find that I need to make sure that I keep the strengths and enjoyments of all my kids in mind. This is not easy, I don't do it well and I knwo someone always gets the short end of the stick. Each of them is different and although some need a lot of my attention, they all need to feel special and do things they love! This would be an area that I am personally fighting to improve.
This sound clip from The People's Pharmacy touches on this important part of the balancing act.
I struggle to know if what I am doing is the right thing all the time. I have asked the specialists and family members to let me know when my ideas are totally CRAZY and when they are on track. I find references to explain why I do what I do because I struggle to explain the reasons behind the drive within me and and "gut" feeling that I have for some of the crazy things I do to others who are not in my shoes. But nevertheless, I have chosen to fight, find and figure out how I can make the process of learning and life the best it can be for kids. For without them, life would certainly not be as eventful or enjoyable!!!!

Today I was the Sub for a Sub!

One of my favorite things to do in my "freetime" is sub at our school. I really don't mind which class I am asked to spend the day in, but there are a few that are my favorites... today's class was one of them!!  Mrs. Cottingham, high school teacher, has classes that the topics/ content are fun, can be made realavent to kids and a group of students that are willing to talk and join in a good conversation. My sister-in-law was planning on subbing for her all week and then was asked to switch to a long-term sub in the building, so I got to spend time in a great school with a wonderful and interesting group of teenagers for the day! Yippee!!!!!

I got to "teach" Citizenship/Civics, Sociology, Economics, hang with the students during study hall and work with a student on an optical illusion project while avoiding computer viruses. I say "teach" because the students actually taught me a lot more more about them, why they interact with each other the way they do and how needy they are for attention, than the information and conversational learning that I went over with them. One of the most fun parts of the day was watching the 9th graders put on skits about relationships and listening to some of the comments that showed strength and self worth!


The young adults asked good questions about debt, why college is so expensive and listened to me explain over and over the pros and cons of credit. I was very impressed that the econ class knew the rule of 72 (I didn't before my husband explained it to me last night). I was even more impressed that they thought it was crazy that texting lingo and slang conversational vocabulary was adopted into the English dictionary.

Kids are kids and teenagers will continue to challenge us, but today I stopped to wonder whether we take enough time to try and understand them, connect with them, and meet them where they are or if we spend too much time asking them to understand us, connect with us and take our goals and our "important" info to heart when it may not have any meaning to them. I truly feel that they are a puzzle that is worth putting the pieces together to figure out. I can't wait until I can spend another day subbing, finding the pieces that will help with picture come together!

Franklin Comes for a Visit

Gotta love the excitement when guests come! This week we have had Franklin ( yes, the Turtle from PBS) come and visit. The best part is that there is no food involved and the house doesn't have to be cleaned.


The 1st grade teacher in Underwood has a Franklin that goes home each week with her students. Franklin comes with a tote bag, a book and a journal. The kids get to write about what they have done with Franklin during the week and either draw or glue pictures onto the journal pages. I love it! Libby loves it too! It is so much fun to read about what Franklin has been doing throughout the year on his visits to the different homes. It is also fun to see how the kids have changed through pictures and writing! The only trouble with the entire process is when you get forget to take pictures and write so you play catch up at the week's end!

This week Franklin has had many adventures... reading, bedroom cleaning, playing outdoors, building a chicken coop, hanging out at the dinner table, visiting the guys at the shop while drinking coffee, snow removal duty, and has been on a snowmobile and bus ride. He has also experienced our ever so lovely winter storm-- farm style.

This is such a fun family project and one that I hope each first grader gets to experience!