Sick of my son's elementary school pushing environmentalsim...

[limequat]

So I'm starting with his 1st grade teacher. Critique my note...


Hi <redacted>,
I've noted that at the school there is an emphasis on environmentalism.
While I agree that protecting natural resources is important, the rocket and Lorax day projects smack more of activism than education. It irks me that my son knows all about the 3 'R's (no the other ones: reduce, reuse, recycle) but, for instance, still struggles with spelling.
Is the emphasis on environmentalism a district preference? Curriculum?

Thanks,
Limequat

[TonySutton]

Personally, I would recommend discussing this face to face with the teacher.

[fisharmor]

So I'm starting with his 1st grade teacher. Critique my note...


Hi <redacted>,
I've noted that at the school there is an emphasis on environmentalism.
While I agree that protecting natural resources is important, the rocket and Lorax day projects smack more of activism than education. It irks me that my son knows all about the 3 'R's (no the other ones: reduce, reuse, recycle) but, for instance, still struggles with spelling.
Is the emphasis on environmentalism a district preference? Curriculum?

Thanks,
Limequat

Well.... here goes the computer programmer in me again.... what's the goal here?

If the goal is to change the system, forgive me for not pulling punches, but that's a fool's errand. The system you have a beef with does have a defined goal, and has for over a century. It's to create docile citizens who conform to a herd mentality and accept whatever it is that authority figures tell them to accept. This is pretty heavily documented at this point.

That your son struggles with spelling is really of no concern to them, because a self-sufficient populace of independent thinkers is the exact opposite of what they want to accomplish. Some kids pick it up naturally, some of those go along with the system, some of those recognize that they will be handsomely rewarded for perpetuating the system, and the vast majority of them are chewed up and spat out, left to their own devices but also left with a strong conditioning in place that prevents them from rebelling.

Environmentalism is not a popular topic by accident. The fundamental tenet of it is that each and every one of us needs to sacrifice a better life for the greater good. It is not in any way about protecting natural resources: if it was, then someone in the 34 years since I had the environmentalist stuff in grade school would have stopped to consider alternatives such as those Walter Block suggests so convincingly. They too would respond to simple, axiomatic arguments like "cattle and house cats aren't endangered, and elephants wouldn't be either if people owned them".

Is your goal to convince the teacher? It may be possible. I know schoolteachers who have quit since the advent of SOLs because they recognized that the system is rotten. But you'd need to recognize that as your goal.

That said, I can totally identify with what you're going through. My daughter is 1st grade equivalent right now and her spelling is atrocious, still all caps, and we still fight with her tendency to form boxes with her words instead of neat lines, and with how much time she spends embellishing letters (it gets to medieval manuscript levels some times).

The difference between her and your son is that she's not in a system that is going to take a big red stamp that says "STUPID" and put it on her forehead when she doesn't get it right away. But your son is. If he doesn't get this at the level they expect they're going to identify him as not being one of the future leaders of society, they're going to hold him back, put him in a class with kids who have genuine problems, and fuck up his head right well. And they're going to put shame and pressure on you, because you know your kid isn't stupid, and so you're going to push him to get it right at the speed they expect. He's going to get alienated from you as well as from his peers.

Add in some SSRIs, and it makes you just want to shake people violently by the scruffs of their necks and scream "Of course they're shooting the places up, you fucking dolts!"

For the longest time I was ashamed that I had to take calculus I three times. When I look back on it, I realize that it was the first time I had to actually do something to get a grade, besides sitting in the class and getting it all by osmosis. And it was after 12 years of being in prison. I just didn't give a shit the first two times.
But I'm old and (I hope) wise enough to know now that nothing on Earth would have made me learn calculus at that point. It just wasn't going to happen.
Then I came back to it four years later and decided I had to pass it, and got a B with a modicum of effort.
And I wear that story like a badge now, because that's the way people work.

The schools aren't going to teach your son to read. The thing a lot of people don't realize is that neither are you. There's only one person who's going to teach your son to read, and that's your son.

We've taken to bribing our daughter, and I have zero problem with that. Because bettering yourself isn't a civic duty, contrary to what he's being told in school. When you, adult Limequat, better yourself, you do it because you are seeking a reward.

My daughter asked me once what grades are. I immediately told her "There are only two grades in life. You either got paid, or you didn't."
My parents were there and looked like I had just slapped her, but I asked them both, "How is that not true?"
The sooner they learn that, the better off they'll be, I think.

Sorry to ramble a bit.

[RJB]

You don't have to commit to , but just look into homeschooling. My wife and I non-committedly looked into it and got hooked. We've made sacrifices but we've never regretted it. All the propaganda will eventually become a wedge between you and your kids-- That's what it is intended to do.

[limequat]

Why's this?

[limequat]

Well.... here goes the computer programmer in me again.... what's the goal here?

If the goal is to change the system, forgive me for not pulling punches, but that's a fool's errand. The system you have a beef with does have a defined goal, and has for over a century. It's to create docile citizens who conform to a herd mentality and accept whatever it is that authority figures tell them to accept. This is pretty heavily documented at this point.

That your son struggles with spelling is really of no concern to them, because a self-sufficient populace of independent thinkers is the exact opposite of what they want to accomplish. Some kids pick it up naturally, some of those go along with the system, some of those recognize that they will be handsomely rewarded for perpetuating the system, and the vast majority of them are chewed up and spat out, left to their own devices but also left with a strong conditioning in place that prevents them from rebelling.

Environmentalism is not a popular topic by accident. The fundamental tenet of it is that each and every one of us needs to sacrifice a better life for the greater good. It is not in any way about protecting natural resources: if it was, then someone in the 34 years since I had the environmentalist stuff in grade school would have stopped to consider alternatives such as those Walter Block suggests so convincingly. They too would respond to simple, axiomatic arguments like "cattle and house cats aren't endangered, and elephants wouldn't be either if people owned them".

Is your goal to convince the teacher? It may be possible. I know schoolteachers who have quit since the advent of SOLs because they recognized that the system is rotten. But you'd need to recognize that as your goal.

That said, I can totally identify with what you're going through. My daughter is 1st grade equivalent right now and her spelling is atrocious, still all caps, and we still fight with her tendency to form boxes with her words instead of neat lines, and with how much time she spends embellishing letters (it gets to medieval manuscript levels some times).

The difference between her and your son is that she's not in a system that is going to take a big red stamp that says "STUPID" and put it on her forehead when she doesn't get it right away. But your son is. If he doesn't get this at the level they expect they're going to identify him as not being one of the future leaders of society, they're going to hold him back, put him in a class with kids who have genuine problems, and fuck up his head right well. And they're going to put shame and pressure on you, because you know your kid isn't stupid, and so you're going to push him to get it right at the speed they expect. He's going to get alienated from you as well as from his peers.

Add in some SSRIs, and it makes you just want to shake people violently by the scruffs of their necks and scream "Of course they're shooting the places up, you fucking dolts!"

For the longest time I was ashamed that I had to take calculus I three times. When I look back on it, I realize that it was the first time I had to actually do something to get a grade, besides sitting in the class and getting it all by osmosis. And it was after 12 years of being in prison. I just didn't give a shit the first two times.
But I'm old and (I hope) wise enough to know now that nothing on Earth would have made me learn calculus at that point. It just wasn't going to happen.
Then I came back to it four years later and decided I had to pass it, and got a B with a modicum of effort.
And I wear that story like a badge now, because that's the way people work.

The schools aren't going to teach your son to read. The thing a lot of people don't realize is that neither are you. There's only one person who's going to teach your son to read, and that's your son.

We've taken to bribing our daughter, and I have zero problem with that. Because bettering yourself isn't a civic duty, contrary to what he's being told in school. When you, adult Limequat, better yourself, you do it because you are seeking a reward.

My daughter asked me once what grades are. I immediately told her "There are only two grades in life. You either got paid, or you didn't."
My parents were there and looked like I had just slapped her, but I asked them both, "How is that not true?"
The sooner they learn that, the better off they'll be, I think.

Sorry to ramble a bit.

Hi Fish, thanks for the post. I've enjoyed many of your posts in the past and appreciate the input.

Here's where I'm at. My son actually does really well in the academic areas. On his last 3 report cards he got perfect scores in math, science, and reading. THEY DON'T TEACH SPELLING! But there's plenty of time for other bullshit like watching the Lorax for the 5th time.

What's my goal here? I guess it's painfully obvious that no goal that I have at this point could be remotely attainable.
But I can register my discontent. Maybe 10 other guys are sitting around gritting their teeth. At least if I say something I force the teacher to rationalize this as opposed to it all flying by without comment.
Also, there is an escalation path. It goes teacher, principle, superintendent, and finally school board. I doubt I'll take it that far, but I took the first step.
Finally, I want the teacher to admit that the environmental conditioning is built into the curriculum.

[limequat]

You don't have to commit to , but just look into homeschooling. My wife and I non-committedly looked into it and got hooked. We've made sacrifices but we've never regretted it. All the propaganda will eventually become a wedge between you and your kids-- That's what it is intended to do.

Thank you for the recommendation. I would be interested in this, not sure the wife would go for it. Where did you start?

[VIDEODROME]

Is the teacher themselves even doing something personally in their own lives to improve the environment? Do they drive a hybrid car? Do they recycle? Does the school itself have recycling containers for glass and plastic refuse?

You could challenge them to actually lead with real world examples instead of burning up more electricity to watch a movie.

[limequat]

Is the teacher themselves even doing something personally in their own lives to improve the environment? Do they drive a hybrid car? Do they recycle? Does the school itself have recycling containers for glass and plastic refuse?

You could challenge them to actually lead with real world examples instead of burning up more electricity to watch a movie.

I don't know or care what the teacher does personally. I don't think that's fair. The school itself does recycle and the lorax project took time out of school to plant things. It's not hypocrisy that bothers me. I wouldn't even levy that charge.
The problem is that environmentalism comes before learning.

[oyarde]

I don't know or care what the teacher does personally. I don't think that's fair. The school itself does recycle and the lorax project took time out of school to plant things. It's not hypocrisy that bothers me. I wouldn't even levy that charge.
The problem is that environmentalism comes before learning.

Move your child to another school or home school , I reckon , are your best choices.You could check prices on private church schools. A little exposure to religion would be long term much less harmful than exposure to statists , Marxists , socialists.

[limequat]

Move your child to another school or home school , I reckon , are your best choices.You could check prices on private church schools. A little exposure to religion would be long term much less harmful than exposure to statists , Marxists , socialists.

The same thought occurred to me.

[Cissy]

Hi Fish, thanks for the post. I've enjoyed many of your posts in the past and appreciate the input.

Here's where I'm at. My son actually does really well in the academic areas. On his last 3 report cards he got perfect scores in math, science, and reading. THEY DON'T TEACH SPELLING! But there's plenty of time for other bullshit like watching the Lorax for the 5th time.

What's my goal here? I guess it's painfully obvious that no goal that I have at this point could be remotely attainable.
But I can register my discontent. Maybe 10 other guys are sitting around gritting their teeth. At least if I say something I force the teacher to rationalize this as opposed to it all flying by without comment.
Also, there is an escalation path. It goes teacher, principle, superintendent, and finally school board. I doubt I'll take it that far, but I took the first step.
Finally, I want the teacher to admit that the environmental conditioning is built into the curriculum.

Psst... "Principal", not "principle". (the mnemonic I learned years ago was "the principal is your pal") Since you mentioned your desire for your son to learn proper spelling, I thought I'd mention it.

Edit: you may also which to edit your original post's typo: "environmentalsim" should be "environmentalism".

Never forget: you are your son's primary teacher. He will learn more from you and his mother than any other people on the planet.

[CaptUSA]

The school administrators and probably most of the teachers don't even know why they're doing it. As far as they're concerned, this is what they're supposed to do. They wouldn't think that anyone would question it since it makes perfect sense to them. If a parent does question it, it's because that parent is crazy. Probably, a right-wing extremist, racist, whacko.

They're caught up in group think. You cannot break them out of it.

You can, however, find other means to educate your child. For my family, I turned to private education. Remember that every properly educated child is home-schooled. How you supplement that it up to you, but the government school is working against your efforts, not with them.

When I hear people talking about keeping their kids in government schools because the alternatives are too hard or too expensive, I have to laugh (or cry). The effort you save just by not having to undo the damage is worth it.

[Dr.3D]

So I'm starting with his 1st grade teacher. Critique my note...


Hi <redacted>,
I've noted that at the school there is an emphasis on environmentalism.
While I agree that protecting natural resources is important, the rocket and Lorax day projects smack more of activism than education. It irks me that my son knows all about the 3 'R's (no the other ones: reduce, reuse, recycle) but, for instance, still struggles with spelling.
Is the emphasis on environmentalism a district preference? Curriculum?

Thanks,
Limequat

My parents tried something along those lines when I was a kid. It only worked to make school officials harder on me.

[Philhelm]

0101110000111110010101001011;

I don't think there really needs to be a goal. Any measure of resistance or questioning of people in "authority" is its own reward. Question these fuckers at every turn! Or club a baby seal at the main entrance of the school to show them what you think of their pissant environmentalism.

[jonhowe]

I don't know or care what the teacher does personally. I don't think that's fair. The school itself does recycle and the lorax project took time out of school to plant things. It's not hypocrisy that bothers me. I wouldn't even levy that charge.
The problem is that environmentalism comes before learning.

I would consider hands on environmentalism to BE learning, especially for inner city kids (not sure where you live, just saying).

[Cissy]

The school administrators and probably most of the teachers don't even know why they're doing it. As far as they're concerned, this is what they're supposed to do. They wouldn't think that anyone would question it since it makes perfect sense to them. If a parent does question it, it's because that parent is crazy. Probably, a right-wing extremist, racist, whacko.

They're caught up in group think. You cannot break them out of it.

You can, however, find other means to educate your child. For my family, I turned to private education. Remember that every properly educated child is home-schooled. How you supplement that it up to you, but the government school is working against your efforts, not with them.

When I hear people talking about keeping their kids in government schools because the alternatives are too hard or too expensive, I have to laugh (or cry). The effort you save just by not having to undo the damage is worth it.

+rep

[Carson]

It seems the only recourse is discussion time at dinner. It's your job to undo all they did during the day.

[heavenlyboy34]

I think homeschooling is a good idea-depending on the child's personality. I took some of my high school classes via correspondence (we didn't have interwebz back in my day-had to use snail mail /old fart). Passed them easily and didn't have to sit through boring classes. But I enjoy studying/autodidacticism and don't need a teacher for many academic subjects.

ETA: I've seen ads for full online k-12 education in various print/digital adverts. Something to consider.

[Suzanimal]

Thank you for the recommendation. I would be interested in this, not sure the wife would go for it. Where did you start?

We've been homeschooling since my 15 year old was in 2nd grade. Start with learning the laws for your state...

http://www.hslda.org/laws/default.asp

That will get you started and then decide if you want to use a curriculum or wing it. We use a curriculum for math (Saxon Math) and writing (we like Writing Strands) but wing other subjects like history. For history, I use this book as a guide (http://www.amazon.com/Timelines-History-DK-Publishing/dp/0756686814) and look around to see what kind of exhibits are coming to town, what kind of historical sites we can visit on a day trip or on vacation and we watch a lot of cool documentaries.

[devil21]

The teacher has been promised at least a 3% raise per year plus pension, health benefits and a 3 month vacation to teach this crap, while most of the non-gov't employed population is taking pay cuts, working less hours and finding their health insurance either getting cancelled or premiums shooting up.

Your letter will be ignored. Common Core is the last step before mass indoctrination to NWO socialism is attained. Home schooling or expensive and selective private schools are your only options now. It -will- only get worse for your kid. You must do your best to inject individualism into the discussion with your child. They already have the genetic profile to "get it".