Just saying | Imamother

DVOM

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 6:50 am

I'm saying it now, and I'm saying it loud and proud:

I'm sure we're headed into another lockdown here in Lakewood. Schools are going to close.

I will not do phone conferences. Ever. Again.

I'll do science experiments at the kitchen table. I'll take hikes. I'll read out loud. I'll discuss current events. We'll write letters to our presidential candidates. We'll write poems. We'll recite poems out loud in costumes we sew together. We'll have a spelling bee. We'll act out scenes from the revolutionary war (lots of revolutionary war sites here in Jersey!). We'll use up tons of paper and glue and glitter and sequins and puff paint and modeling clay. We'll learn about the history of the state of Israel, something I don't think my kids will learn in school. We'll make lots of cookies, and do math problems, and computer coding, and take electronic stuff to pieces, and build forts, and camp out in the backyard.

I will not, however, do phone conferences.

Just try and make me. See what happens. You'll regret it.

amother

Magenta

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 6:56 am

DVOM wrote:

Go homeschoolers.

That's a completely valid stance...

You see, the schools and teachers hate those phone lessons too... they do it so that parents won't say they are lazy and depriving them of service...

So maybe, if enough parents raise the question with the schools, you might find a type of homeschooling program that makes sense for all of you.

For example, it is good to benefit from teacher's manpower & competence to correct homework that is handed in... this is also a way of doing 1:1 lessons: handing in more written work and have it corrected.

I suppose the stars of home- and online-schooling is this chabad organisation that does this for children in far away places... so this might be an alternative...

DVOM

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 6:59 am

Elfrida wrote:

You might want to rethink the idea of camping out in the backyard in November.

The rest sounds fine, as long as you can take the time off work to run it all.

There's no such thing as bad camping weather. Only bad equipment!

I've been working from home since March, and I thankfully have the flexibility to make a schedule that works for me.

Homeschooling here I come!

ExtraCredit

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 7:00 am

DVOM wrote:

Will you take a couple of extra kids? With masks. And shields. And hazmat suits. For great pay. Pretty please?

amother

Babyblue

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 9:18 am

I work in a lakewood school and I feel exactly the same way. All of my neighbors were saying the same.

The problem is that no one is telling this to the schools! School administrators think that parents want the kids to learn and will see it as the school shirking their duty if they don't provide distance learning.

I urge everyone to let their schools know this now. Not after they have everything set up already.....

thunderstorm

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 9:22 am

All fine with me! I think hands on learning does more than virtual ,zoom or phone lessons anyway.
My youngest son became obsessed with watching videos on Torah Anytime by Rabbi YY Jacobson. Maybe it wasn’t the shiur his Rebbe was giving but this is what gave him chiyus and he learned so much from it.
My DH paid for some type of online fun math program for my boys also. It was the first time they found math enjoyable.
We have to do what works for us even if it’s not the conventional way.

amother

Red

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 9:28 am

DVOM wrote:

I hear you , LOUD & clear . But... for how long ?
And not every mother has your stamina and creativity & energy to run such a program at home .
And than what ?

amother

Cyan

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 9:28 am

amother [ Olive ] wrote:

I won’t either, but I have no energy or space to do all the wonderful activities you listed.
My kids will suffer. A lot.

Same.
My kids schools shut and they are bored already. I'm 7 months pregnant and have no energy to entertain them. I'm not good at planning exciting activities either

Mothers

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 10:03 am

amother [ Babyblue ] wrote:

Schools need to set up something - or they will not be able to collect tuition for that time. If parents don’t want to participate, they can opt out.

amother

Teal

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 10:31 am

Out of curiosity, is it all remote learning that you object to or phone conferences in particular? I'm asking because I'm wondering if enough parents call the schools and tell them that phone isn't good enough and they need to switch to Zoom or another similar platform, would that be preferable and would the schools even agree?

My kids did so well over Zoom in the spring. The schools and teachers got really creative. They did a lot of mixed media so it wasn't just staring at the teachers while they lectured. They even had art and gym and music and color war and cooking and scavenger hunts and special projects for the special days. The schools had drive-bys where they handed out supplies and treats for the kids.

DVOM

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 12:02 pm

amother [ Teal ] wrote:

I and many other parents begged for zoom. Aint gonna happen here in Lakewood.

DVOM

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 12:04 pm

amother [ Red ] wrote:

I hear you , LOUD & clear . But... for how long ?
And not every mother has your stamina and creativity & energy to run such a program at home .
And than what ?

God's the only one who can answer how long! I'm not going to sweat it. All I know is that there will be no phone conferences in my future. That much I can control!

DVOM

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 12:07 pm

ExtraCredit wrote:

Will you take a couple of extra kids? With masks. And shields. And hazmat suits. For great pay. Pretty please?

Seriously considering it!

I'd actually love to set up some sort of learning pod with another family or two who'd be similarly careful with masks and social distancing.

Any Lakewood mama's with elementary school age boys or girls interested in joining the DVOM homeschool?

amother

Teal

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 12:07 pm

DVOM wrote:

I and many other parents begged for zoom. Aint gonna happen here in Lakewood.

That's a real pity. I know a yeshivish school near me gave out so-called kosher tablets with a "kosher" form of Zoom so that they could do school virtually but their students couldn't access the regular internet. Would something like that fly in Lakewood if enough parents demanded it (and perhaps some donated to the school for that purpose)?

amother

Rose

Tue, Sep 29 2020, 12:11 pm

DVOM wrote:

I and many other parents begged for zoom. Aint gonna happen here in Lakewood.

Depending on where this school year goes, that may change.
A very yeshivish school in my community which was adamant about no zoom last year, gave in, and is going to be utilizing those "kosher tablets" for a current closure. I think they saw the handwriting on the wall.....