Update on Ben and school

[purerandomness]

I feel like I should post something to update on Ben's progress in school and what happened during the parent-teacher conference last week.

Comments

[hikerpoet]

That giraffe is amazing! I think our families have the same taste in animals

[purerandomness]

Thanks! I think now that we know what the problems were (from her end of things-- I am kind of on the end of his actions being completely developmentally normal for a 5-year old boy!), we can talk with Ben constructively and let him know what is and is not appropriate for school. It sucks, though-- I feel that we're already having to tamp down his innate personality just to fit the "mold" of the school.

We will be having a hand in selecting his 1st grade teacher, I can pretty much guarantee. Someone who is perhaps more flexible with different learning styles. The kicker is that this teacher is generally LOVED by the community and other families who have had her-- I.Just.Don't.Get.It.

[lyricmaniac]

I'm surprised she's a vet. Some of that stuff sounds like something a rookie (in desperate need of finding a new career path) would say. Very surprised. I'm sorry you're dealing with this.

[purerandomness]

I spoke with my mom (a veteran teacher) who said that maybe Ben's teacher had gotten stuck in her "rut" and just was going through the motions, not really differentiating the disciplinary tactics for the child. Which is sad, really.

[tooby3]

omfg... I am so sorry. That is beyond not cool - you guys handled that so well though. I hope you see things turn around.

We have had a couple of issues with Ry over the past year+ - you are absolutely right that when the teacher just tells you what's up, you can work it out pretty darn quickly.

[purerandomness]

Ben definitely seems to be having better days! Now that we know what to ask him for: instead of asking if his car got moved (which it doesn't), we ask if his teacher had to speak extra with him that day. Apparently, it's been a lot less-- we had one perfect day on Friday and yesterday he had some minor issues (which I would have completely brushed aside, but she let us know about).

[sarahinajar]

Wow, from the way you talked about the teacher, I assumed she was a very new, young teacher and not someone who has been teaching for 24 years. That is disappointing.

[purerandomness]

I wrote this to lyric, above, but when I talked about this with my mom (a 30-year teacher), she thought that perhaps Ben's teacher has gotten stuck in a "rut" with her classroom management. Hopefully after the conversation with Jake, she will incorporate our suggestions into how to help Ben achieve his best!