Going to war with the school's car dropoff
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@89th said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
First, congrats to a kindergarten start. I'm in the same boat, my oldest (5) started two days ago as well. Our district held an event over the summer for kindergarteners to practice riding the bus (in the high school parking lot) so I think that helped. My daughter did say it was weird there weren't any seatbelts and that the bus goes "fast".
Anyway, I say that because:
- Yeah, fuck that process. Sorry you're dealing with it and the rush of teachers trying to move cars along.
- Maybe write to the school to see if they can hold a "bus riding practice" event one weekend?
- Another idea, write to the school to see if they'd be open to a "special drop off area" for parents who know they'll need more time getting their kid out of the car and into the school.
Well, I'm getting bad vibes from this administration. To be fair, every single parent who's taken their kids here said they were awesome. So, okay, they have a decent reputation. But I don't think they're down with suggestions and so I think a different approach might be necessary.
Why I say that is because on day 1, we were told by the teachers outside the what for and why is and they weren't negotiating.
A couple other kids had the same problems ours did, so we got this very administrative email last night thanking us for our patience and understanding, with assurance that the procedure has been amended to make sure children would be escorted into the school. So you get 1-2 more teachers outdoors and none of them are helping the kids inside. Uh huh.
So, my idea is to ask them exactly what dropoff procedure they have for kids on an IEP and go from there. Absolutely get an answer, take names, and then very politely ask them why in the good golly fuck didn't they follow it because grabbing an autistic kid by an arm and then giving up sure as shit isn't going to be part of the process.
But, like I said, I'm new to the game, so I figured I'd ask for alternatives. If none, I'll at least do that.
Just some ideas. How's the kid liking their class and teacher?
We met the teacher and her aides. They all seem great. They know their shit, they know how to work with kids and they aren't indoctrinated. So, seems okay there. Kiddo's dealing with it okay I guess. According to her it's a bit of a mixed bag. Sounds about normal.
Yours taking to school well, or are they getting homesick?
@Aqua-Letifer said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
We met the teacher and her aides. They all seem great. They know their shit, they know how to work with kids and they aren't indoctrinated. So, seems okay there. Kiddo's dealing with it okay I guess. According to her it's a bit of a mixed bag. Sounds about normal.
Yours taking to school well, or are they getting homesick?
Good to hear.
Ours is liking it so far. She did 2- or 3-day preschool for the last two years so she's somewhat familiar with an elementary school, although with preschool the parent walks the kid to school, makes sure they have their lunch, jacket, etc. Kindergarten...the kid is in charge of all of that. As expected, she's tired and moody in the evening after such a mental workout each day, but we take it in stride. Admittedly, we also got lucky as the neighbor across the street also has a 5 year old girl who's in the same class as ours, so I'd imagine they help each other on the bus, in the cafeteria, etc.
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I was an August kid too, so was 17 when I graduated. Not sure how another year would have changed anything, but worth considering if there is a quality alternative. It's expensive, but I highly recommend a year or two of Montessori. It paid huge dividends with our daughter.
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I was an August kid too, so was 17 when I graduated. Not sure how another year would have changed anything, but worth considering if there is a quality alternative. It's expensive, but I highly recommend a year or two of Montessori. It paid huge dividends with our daughter.
@Mik said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
It's expensive, but I highly recommend a year or two of Montessori. It paid huge dividends with our daughter.
Yeah, that's our plan B. As you say, expensive but it can really help.
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Yeah July/August can be a tough call. Certainly there are studies that show the benefits to waiting, but it's easy to say that without being the parent of an August baby. Ours is May 2018 and her friend is September 2017 and you can definitely tell the difference those extra 9 months gives a 5 year old.
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My son was born in July, and struggled a bit at first, but he did fine in the end. There was no perceptible difference by the time he reached middle school.
We put both of ours in Montessori. I don't think I've ever been happier with a school. My daughter would happily have stayed there forever.
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My son was born in July, and struggled a bit at first, but he did fine in the end. There was no perceptible difference by the time he reached middle school.
We put both of ours in Montessori. I don't think I've ever been happier with a school. My daughter would happily have stayed there forever.
@Doctor-Phibes said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
My son was born in July, and struggled a bit at first, but he did fine in the end. There was no perceptible difference by the time he reached middle school.
We put both of ours in private Montessori before school proper started. I don't think I've ever been happier with a school. At the time, it felt like a lot of money, but now I wouldn't change anything. My daughter would happily have stayed there forever.
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Oh, and a note on buses:
We let her do that right now, and no matter what kind of practice she receives, she's going to try to get off at different stops from time to time. Sure as you're born, she will do that. So the only safeguard there is relying on the bus driver to know this and do something about it. Would rather wait for her to get old enough that this is no longer a problem.
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Yeah that would be scary. Throw an apple airtag into her backpack? Yesterday in the afternoon, we did have a mom (from the prior bus stop) run up to our school bus stop telling us her 5 year old son didn't get off the bus (he was on it, but didn't get off at the stop).
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In my particular school district when I started kindergarten, I was the youngest allowed to the day. You had to be 5 to go, and my 5th birthday was the first day of school, September 10, 1973.
I’ve since checked and that was the Monday after Labor Day. It seems they waited to start on a full week.
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In my particular school district when I started kindergarten, I was the youngest allowed to the day. You had to be 5 to go, and my 5th birthday was the first day of school, September 10, 1973.
I’ve since checked and that was the Monday after Labor Day. It seems they waited to start on a full week.
@jon-nyc said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
In my particular school district when I started kindergarten, I was the youngest allowed to the day. You had to be 5 to go, and my 5th birthday was the first day of school, September 10, 1973.
I
That was three months after I graduated. FML.
“I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill
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@jon-nyc said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
In my particular school district when I started kindergarten, I was the youngest allowed to the day. You had to be 5 to go, and my 5th birthday was the first day of school, September 10, 1973.
I
That was three months after I graduated. FML.
@Mik said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
@jon-nyc said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
In my particular school district when I started kindergarten, I was the youngest allowed to the day. You had to be 5 to go, and my 5th birthday was the first day of school, September 10, 1973.
I
That was three months after I graduated. FML.
Ahem...
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What should I do, though?
Let me introduce you to homeschooling…
Seriously… No matter where you are at in the whole culture war issues, the simple fact is that teachers and school counselors feel they are more qualified and capable to make decisions regarding your child’s mental, emotional, and physical health than you are. And will make decisions without consulting you that can and will have tremendous consequences on your family.
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What should I do, though?
Let me introduce you to homeschooling…
Seriously… No matter where you are at in the whole culture war issues, the simple fact is that teachers and school counselors feel they are more qualified and capable to make decisions regarding your child’s mental, emotional, and physical health than you are. And will make decisions without consulting you that can and will have tremendous consequences on your family.
@LuFins-Dad said in Going to war with the school's car dropoff:
What should I do, though?
Let me introduce you to homeschooling…
Seriously… No matter where you are at in the whole culture war issues, the simple fact is that teachers and school counselors feel they are more qualified and capable to make decisions regarding your child’s mental, emotional, and physical health than you are. And will make decisions without consulting you that can and will have tremendous consequences on your family.
Yeah I get that but is that kid actually going to show up at school, where, y'know, they're at this point legally obligated to teach him, or what?
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I’m not really sure I get your question… It is happy hour, but…
The Brad
