I was going to title this the homeschool debate, then realized it’s not about homeschooling, its about public schools. The alternative is not just homeschooling, but private schools too. Homeschooling gets a bad rap for pulling kid out of the public school system, but people say they don’t have the money for private schooling and leave it at that. In reality, parents who choose to homeschool are the same as parents who choose the private schools. In the end, it’s the public schools they are avoiding.

There is a lot of debate about how to improve the public school system. In fact, public school teachers are often offended when kids are pulled – only when pulled for homeschooling though, ironically. It is a well known fact in the public school system that a private school student will be ahead of all public school students. Homeschool kids on the other hand? They are rebels who aren’t being educated, or have parents who think they can do a better job than a certified teacher.

Well actually, some parents can do better than a certified teacher – if a teacher at a private school can do better (based on test scores) than a teacher at a public school, why can’t a parent do better? I think it’s not a matter of who does a better job, it’s a matter of parents taking control of their child’s education. Some parents choose to educate at home, some choose to lobby for better public schools and some parents choose to pay for private school.

Why should we criticize any parent for being involved enough in their child’s education to make a tough decision? Homeschooling is not an easy choice, just ask one of the thousands of homeschoolers who give up their time each and every day to ensure their children have a good education. Private school is not an easy choice, just as the thousands of parents who give up their hard earned money to pay 15,000-20,000 or more a year on top of taxes for public schools. Public school is the easy answer, unless you want a good education for your child, then it is a hard choice too – just ask the few parents who put the time and effort into working with teachers and schools and spending the time working with their child to ensure a good education.

The parent who sends a child to the public school system blindly, expecting a well educated child after high school graduation with no effort on their part, is the parent who should be criticized.

In the end, a good education is the goal, and reaching the goal is difficult no matter which path you choose to take. So public school teachers, back off of homeschool families, the effort of a good education for an individual child takes time and effort and money on the part of the parent, regardless of the direction they steer.

Looking for more information on homeschooling? Check out My Homeschool Guide

Related posts:

1. Homeschooling: Special Education Needs
2. Homeschool Resources
3. Parent Resources

Applying New Information by Taking Notes

When at a school meeting or in-service, the biggest thing that all teachers can do to help pass the time more quickly, is to take notes. Instead of simply taking down information that is spoken, try to apply the information to specific skills or teaching strategies. Notes can include presentation methods demonstrated by the principal or other person in charge of the meeting as well as ideas that come directly from the topic of discussion.

Teachers can attempt to come up with specific examples of how and when they will use a specific tip or strategy in the classroom and write down that example in their notes. Not only will taking these notes help pass the time, but it will impress administration and the teacher may actually learn something at the same time!

Related posts:

1. Team Meetings Increase Student Motivation
2. Homework Communication Folder
3. No Child Left Behind?

Extension Activities for Obama’s Speech

Have students write an essay about one specific goal that they have for the school year. They should include details as to why they have this particular goal and exactly how they plan on meeting this goal.

Students can work together as a class to create a list of “class goals” much like teachers allow students to create “class rules“. Have students share lots of ideas for goals and then condense them into 3-4 really important goals. Once these are decided on, write them on a large piece of paper and have all the students sign the paper, promising to try their best to meet these goals.

Students can create a piece of artwork (coloring, painting, tissue paper art, etc.) that shows the outcome of meeting goals for the school year. Knowing what they are shooting for in the end will help to motivate them to work hard towards that goal.

For lesson plan ideas on preparing students for the speech as well as information on how to listen to the speech, visit Lesson Plan for Obama’s Speech to Students.

Read more extension ideas that will help teachers use President Obama’s speech to bring more appropriate student behavior to the classroom.

Related posts:

1. President Obama’s Take on Education
2. President Obama Wins 2009 Nobel Peace Prize
3. The Obama Effect

What can teachers do to prevent the spread of Flu in their classrooms?

Teach proper hygiene. Teaching students to sneeze into their elbows is only part of the issue. If that student then wipes his elbow with his hand and grabs the ball at recess, those germs are still being spread. Look for creative ways to teach lessons about germs. Check out the germy potato experiment!

Keep disinfectant handy. Each afternoon when the students go home, teachers should disinfect each chair, desk, door knob and other materials that were handled by students. Have students use waterless hand-soap upon entering the classroom.

Felling ill? Stay home! While this may be increasingly difficult for a teacher, it is more important than ever for teachers not perpetuate the spread of any illness. Students need to stay home too, even if it means parents must lose a day of work or call in a babysitter.

It is true that the Swine Flu is simply another strain of the flu and many feel that the concern is overblown. Unfortunately, the flu does kill people, and with the numbers of diagnosed flu cases as high as it is already, outside of the flu season, some concern is warranted. Vaccines will become available, but not until October with the bulk of vaccines not available until November.

Related posts:

1. Preventing the Spread of Swine Flu and Other Illness
2. The Role of Social Media in Education
3. Change in Grading Scale for P.G. County

• The student who does not turn in his homework receives a 50% for that homework assignment
• The student who bombs a test and gets only 1 out of 50 questions correct receives a 50% for that test grade
• The student who does not participate gets a 50% for a participation grade

What Does this New Grading Scale Mean?

There is little information being provided to teachers or principals regarding the rationale behind this new grading scale. This leaves each individual the task of coming up with an understanding for him or herself. Currently there are two thoughts about it:

1. With the lowest grade allowed being a 50%, students have a better chance at pulling up their overall grade for any one class
2. With the lowest grade allowed being a 50%, students will not have their spirits crushed at seeing a lower percentage grade on an assignment

Looking at these more carefully it can be seen that the logic is flawed:

1. While yes, it will be easier for students to pull up a failing grade if the lowest grade on record is a 50%, this only serves to help inflate their actual grades. How will the student feel who turns his work in all year feel when the student who sits next to him doesn’t turn in work but makes up the grade in other areas? Grade inflation is a huge issue and parents should not sit back and be silent about this unless they like the idea of their children receiving a grade that they did not actually earn.

2. Self-esteem has always been a huge issue for public schools. Ever wonder why teachers no longer give students an F for failing? An E will help a failing student feel better, right? While teachers need to not cut students down, degrade them in any way or cause them to feel badly about themselves if at all possible, is it really the teacher’s job to lie to students to make them feel better?

What can be done? Nothing, really. Teachers have to abide by the new grading scale and students get to reap the rewards. In the end, though, the students are going to be the ones who are on the losing end as they receive inflated grades and a falsely inflated sense of self-esteem.

Related posts:

1. Change in Grading Scale for P.G. County
2. Teaching to Learning Styles
3. When Students Lie to Teachers

Here’s what you can find:

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Back to school savings

Savings on everything you might need from classroom supplies to extra curricular supplies and more.

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School shopping by grade

Check out the grade your child is going into for a check list of everything you need.

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Find cool new backpacks already packed with great school supplies.

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Looking for that perfect backpack? Look no further than:

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College students, looking for school supplies?

Check out college essentials.

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Find the textbooks you need here:

Amazon textbook store.

Related posts:

1. Homework Help
2. How to Make Flour Paste
3. How to Make Silly Putty

First, create or tweak your classroom management plan. This is important because only when your students are obeying the rules and on task will great learning take place in the classroom. If you are a returning teacher, think about what worked and what did not work, and find something new to add to your classroom management plan. It may also be helpful to become familiar with individualized behavior plans.

Second, create a curriculum map or review previous lesson plans. If the curriculum is new, a curriculum map will cut down on lesson planning time during the first quarter. If the curriculum is not new, reviewing the first few weeks worth of lesson plans will help prepare you for the new year.

Here are some more great tips for preparing for the first day of school.

Related posts:

1. Free Lesson Planning Resource
2. Back to School Lesson Planning
3. Extension Ideas for Lesson on Obama’s Speech