A Very Monday Tuesday

[k3am]

There is nothing on the agenda for next week, so Friday will be DD’s last day of first grade!

I can’t begin to say how happy I am about this. Or how happy SHE is about this!

[vasc]

Are y’all looking for math fact fluency help or problem solving? DD LOVES Reflex Math for fact fluency (add/sub and mult/div). My school uses Zearn for more problem solving stuff.

DD has been working through a cursive workbook I bought her, daily Reflex Math, geography (she’s memorized where the states are and is working on continents and oceans), and Simply Piano. All that plus a pile of books for independent reading will be her summer school.

[campermom]

I'm doing the minimum for homeschool now. Our kids have 2 more weeks. DS1 is working independently and as don't really care what he gets done. DD is attending speech and her twice a week math live learning but I'm not worried about handing in her daily work anymore.

Yesterday I had a meeting or the sole purpose of telling my team I wasn't returning to that school next year and saying goodbye to them after 7 years. It was scheduled in the morning so I had the kids play outside in the baby pool, thinking that would be a nice treat. My little one had a tantrum bc he didn't want to go to the front porch to get his suit, cried throughout my whole meeting no matter what I did to fix the situation. My daughter and older son fought with each other and then as one of my team members who I'm closest to started saying some really heartfelt stuff I had to mute and step away bc DDs leg was bleeding and dropping everywhere.

I feel like that was my most bitter moment in all of this quarantine. This isn't fair to my kids, I can't do my job. I had a couple IEP meetings afterwards and DS2 came out of his downtime and he and DD got in a physical fight. She had a pretty bad mark on her eye and his ear was all red and he was howling to the point that I had to leave the mtg and get him and bring him down and console him.

I can't discipline. I can't work. I can't do this alone.

Then I had to wait for my husband to get home to go clean out my office at my other school and shut it down for the year. When I got there I just cried. I miss my students. It was sad to see other teachers walking to their cars crying. I still had St Pattys decorations up, my birthday card was still on my desk. All the children's belongings were bagged and labeled and waiting for them to be picked up in the gym. It was just a hard day.

[twinmomma]

campermom I'm so sorry. My best friend who is a special ed teacher called yesterday to cry and mourn what is happening with the end of this school year and the talks of what is to come in the fall. It must be so strange to go back into your office and see everything like you left it. I hope summer vacation gives you some relief.

[polecat8]

DD loves to tinker with things and to code.
I got her a book called Code Like a Girl. It's really cool and has a few programming/electronics projects that I think she will like. She also likes the Prodigy website for math and her math teacher just showed her another website called Code Combat that is pretty cool too. Code Combat does require a subscription, which is through her school, but I think they are shutting it off in a few days. I was also looking in to getting her Kiwi Crates again.

I'm not sure what to with DS1 and DS2. DS1 is starting to enjoy Tynker. They also like to play on the Wii all day. I'm hoping that DH will think of some projects to do outside with them. We have a water table and swingset and everyone has a bike. These boys definitely need to burn off some energy!

[rere]

DS got a C in his college English. I am so annoyed. I didn't see him slaving away, so I don't think there was a huge effort on his part. I did read a couple of his papers, which were good. However, there was no grade posted the entire semester. Just the final C. It all went online in March, so you would think there would have been more communication. This is college, so I am trying not to helicopter. I did have him email the professor. I really want to call and ask, especially during a pandemic, how a student is supposed to keep up with their class when there is not a grade posted all 4 months until the end.

[twinmomma]

For summer "schedules" I tasked my girls with coming up with some ideas for what to do during the day. They worked on a rough outline of things like "Morning Indoor Play" and "Afternoon Screen time" so that they have clearer expectations on what to do while they're just hanging around at home. I'm not make it anymore strict than that, but at least then it will help stop the "Can I watch TV/Play Switch/Go On My Tablet" constant whining.

[mommyatty]

Other than reading and writing, I’m not making my kids do anything academic during the summer. If they decide there’s something they want to do, I’ll support it. But absolutely no to workbooks and worksheets and math intensive apps. They need a break. I’m basically giving them the gift of a 1980s childhood summer.

Since they both have weak hand muscles, we will encourage lots of play doh and ask them to help write the grocery list and sneak in other activities that encourage them to strengthen their hand muscles.

[phdmomma]

We will keep up with reading, but that is about it. If they want to do some apps, they can, but I won't make them. I just don't have time to manage it. And in a normal summer, they wouldn't be doing it anyways.

Usually today at DS's school they would be having their fun run, so he is doing laps up and down the sidewalk while I type on my laptop outside. Remind me again why school has decided that we still need to do the "fun run" even though they are shut down?

[waverly]

campermom, are you going to a different school?

[mae0111]

campermom - I'm so sorry. It must have been a heart wrenching decision. I'm sorry that things have been so hard.

[campermom]

I didn’t necessarily choose to leave but my caseload changed to improve. Our placements change from time to time. I am keeping one of my elementary schools and lost my high school. I’m gaining another elementary school. So my numbers will dramatically improve and my ability to do better things for kids will improve. But I’m really going to miss those families, my students and that staff.

[mellym]

Sorry for the tough days mommyatty and campermom.

I took the day off yesterday and it has been full speed ahead today. I have meetings all day. Ugh! Kids were left to their iPads for the past two hours and now DD1 has major attitude, being mean to her sister and screaming at me because she doesn't want to do her school work. I hate that the screens turn her into a monster and I can't figure out how to work and monitor her at the same time. Only two more weeks to go.

[k3am]

Night two of crappy sleep.. thank you 85 degree bedroom. I am not sure how people survived during the "olden" days, as DD likes to call them. You know, back before everyone had an AC?

We decided on paying more to get the zoning. But we also told the company we liked that while would prefer to go with him, we weren't willing to do it if he were that expensive, and he dropped his pricing 15%, so that was nice.

[rere]

k3am, You would have loved my mom. She NEVER wanted to turn on the AC. To the point that I wouldn't be able to put on make up because I was sweating. Sleeping with no covers next to the window with a box fan. When you griped about it, you would get, you wouldn't make it as a pioneer. No shit Sherlock, that's why I was born now.

She also didn't believe in heat. We had a wood burning stove and we would grab our school clothes and run in the living room to get dressed next to it. Good times...

[k3am]

rere, that was my mom growing up. Also the kind of woman who refused to have locks on bathroom doors so she could come in and turn the hot water off if your shower lasted more then 4 minutes so you could rinse in cold and get out. I also remember having a spray bottle and laying under the ceiling fan naked to try to cool off in the summer..

The woman now runs her heater at 78 in the winter and 70 in the summer round the clock and I basically want to shrivel up and die when we stay there now...

[twinmomma]

k3am, rere, I'm that mom... lol I HATE turning on the air conditioner. It's just a giant window unit that's loud and annoying in the living room so I avoid using it at all costs. Plus, I'm usually spending all day in a walk in freezer of an office building, so when I get home I just want to thaw out. Maybe I'd feel differently if I had nice central air that just regulated the temperature instead of the giant beast I have to install each summer.

[k3am]

twinmomma I freeze at work all day and come home to a warm house... but since we’ll be home all day for the foreseeable future and we’re over 100 multiple days in a row already... in May... ew. It’s so gross when random body parts like your elbows and shins start to sweat when you’re just SITTING.

[erinshelley21]

campermom I'm so sorry for the rough day. I think a lot of teachers are feeling the same way as they pack up rooms this year.