With all the discussion we were having with Sarah about her schedule, it got me thinking about planning for college. She pretty much has about a year to make a decision about where she might want to go and what she wants to major in (at least initially). She thinks she wants to do something in biology, possibly bio-engineering. Kris knows a doctor who has a daughter who just started at MSOE (that would be the Milwaukee School of Engineering for those who aren't familiar with it) last year who is majoring in bio-genetic engineering. It sounds like a really cool program and I think it would be something that Sarah is interested in. And at her teacher conferences last fall we found out that her biology teacher helped to develop the curriculum for the program. the doctor that Kris knows told her that they were practically giving scholarships away to women just to get into the program, so that sounds promising.
I decided to look and see if there were any other schools that offered that major, and it turns out the only other one is MIT, so it sounds like a pretty exclusive major. I have a friend who graduated from MSOE and I know that a degree from there is a pretty big deal. There are lots of other schools that offer bio-engineering degrees, and that includes a couple in Florida.
Last year when I was watching the NCAA tournament, the broadcast showed pictures of one campus, Florida Gulf Coast University, and it looked like they had dorms on the beach (ok, not really, but it was a very tropical looking campus). She said she would love to go to school there. So on a lark, I decided to check it out last week, and they do offer bio-engineering. So if she wants to go there, that could be an option. Then we could go visit her when the weather gets cold up here. It might not be a bad idea to move to someplace warm. But in any event, it is time to start looking into it.
Saturday, March 15, 2014
Wednesday, March 5, 2014
My 2₵ On Common Core
I happened to be helping Alison with her math homework last night and as I was looking at her worksheet and noticed it said NY Common Core on the bottom of the page. I decided to look it up and apparently Wisconsin has been teaching the "common core" curriculum for the last 5 years or so. Then it all made sense to me. When I would help Sarah with some of her math homework I thought this is just ridiculous the methods that the children were being taught to solve problems.
I thought they were rather confusing and much more difficult than the traditional methods. Actually, now that I think about it, Sarah's work was much more confusing in grade school but by the time she got to middle school all the methods she had been taught were pretty much thrown out and her teacher began teaching her the traditional methods for things like multiplication and division, and then algebra. Alison, however, is being taught really funky ways of doing things. Which I suppose would be alright if I understood what the heck they were doing.
For example, right now she is working on ratios. Instead of setting up equivalent ratios with a variable for the missing number, then cross multiplying and dividing the get the answer they set up "number boxes". She understands it, but to me it is just a bunch of empty boxes. I figured it out after about a half an hour of looking at it, but it seems so much more difficult than simply cross multiplying and dividing. And that, I think, is the problem with common core. The teaching methods are dumbed down to the lowest common denominator, trying to make a one size fits all method of teaching. It just doesn't work that way. Now add to it that when a child has a problem with a concept and needs help with homework, the parent can't explain it the same way the teacher/school is teaching it. And that is a big problem, because I think in order for a child to have success, the parents need to be heavily involved in the learning process, because unless the teacher is going to be there 18 hours a day to answer questions, it is the responsibility of the parents to serve as an extension of the teacher.
If you can't help your child at home, then that child will fall behind. At least that is my opinion. Both Kris and I have been very involved with helping the girls with their work and I think that is a big reason why they are at the tops in their respective classes. I have heard arguments from educators about the merits of the common core curriculum, and that is great, but unless the parents (or other caretakers) are educated and trained in the the same methods of teaching then it isn't really going to help, and in many cases will end up hurting the learning process.
I have heard suggestions that the governor and others want the change the common core system because it isn't working, but of course the superintendent of schools says it is just fine. I don't know what they are going to do here in WI with common core, but I for one can say that I don't like it one bit, and I hope they do change it. So that is my 2₵ worth on the subject.
I thought they were rather confusing and much more difficult than the traditional methods. Actually, now that I think about it, Sarah's work was much more confusing in grade school but by the time she got to middle school all the methods she had been taught were pretty much thrown out and her teacher began teaching her the traditional methods for things like multiplication and division, and then algebra. Alison, however, is being taught really funky ways of doing things. Which I suppose would be alright if I understood what the heck they were doing.
For example, right now she is working on ratios. Instead of setting up equivalent ratios with a variable for the missing number, then cross multiplying and dividing the get the answer they set up "number boxes". She understands it, but to me it is just a bunch of empty boxes. I figured it out after about a half an hour of looking at it, but it seems so much more difficult than simply cross multiplying and dividing. And that, I think, is the problem with common core. The teaching methods are dumbed down to the lowest common denominator, trying to make a one size fits all method of teaching. It just doesn't work that way. Now add to it that when a child has a problem with a concept and needs help with homework, the parent can't explain it the same way the teacher/school is teaching it. And that is a big problem, because I think in order for a child to have success, the parents need to be heavily involved in the learning process, because unless the teacher is going to be there 18 hours a day to answer questions, it is the responsibility of the parents to serve as an extension of the teacher.
If you can't help your child at home, then that child will fall behind. At least that is my opinion. Both Kris and I have been very involved with helping the girls with their work and I think that is a big reason why they are at the tops in their respective classes. I have heard arguments from educators about the merits of the common core curriculum, and that is great, but unless the parents (or other caretakers) are educated and trained in the the same methods of teaching then it isn't really going to help, and in many cases will end up hurting the learning process.
I have heard suggestions that the governor and others want the change the common core system because it isn't working, but of course the superintendent of schools says it is just fine. I don't know what they are going to do here in WI with common core, but I for one can say that I don't like it one bit, and I hope they do change it. So that is my 2₵ worth on the subject.
Sunday, March 2, 2014
Getting Ready for 2015
This weekend we were tasked with helping Sarah to choose her classes for next year. Her choices had to be submitted by Monday, and she is sort of stressing out over which classes to select. In a way I am a little upset at the school because they have her (as well as the other students) essentially choosing their careers by the time they are 15 years old and setting them on a schedule to have their courses laid out for them.
Sarah has the opportunity to take some AP courses next year (which for those who don't know, are college level courses that will allow them to earn college credit in high school). While I think that it could be beneficial, I also think that given the work load with an AP class in addition to her other honors level classes, I am worried she would be biting off more than she could chew. She will be taking two honors classes for sure and will most likely be taking another one. So I would be worried that taking one (or maybe two) AP courses would be too much for her to handle and her grade point would suffer. My thought is that if her grade point drops, it doesn't matter if she got credit for one college class or not because she won't get accepted into the college that she wants to attend.
Plus, while you can get credit for one class (or maybe more if she takes more than one AP class) I don't think it will do all that much for cutting down the overall time spent in college. These would all be basic, entry level freshman classes anyway, and it wouldn't be like she can cut out a whole semester by taking one class in high school.
We still have to talk about the actual class choices she can take for science, or English, but that will hopefully be finished in the next hour or two.
Sarah has the opportunity to take some AP courses next year (which for those who don't know, are college level courses that will allow them to earn college credit in high school). While I think that it could be beneficial, I also think that given the work load with an AP class in addition to her other honors level classes, I am worried she would be biting off more than she could chew. She will be taking two honors classes for sure and will most likely be taking another one. So I would be worried that taking one (or maybe two) AP courses would be too much for her to handle and her grade point would suffer. My thought is that if her grade point drops, it doesn't matter if she got credit for one college class or not because she won't get accepted into the college that she wants to attend.
Plus, while you can get credit for one class (or maybe more if she takes more than one AP class) I don't think it will do all that much for cutting down the overall time spent in college. These would all be basic, entry level freshman classes anyway, and it wouldn't be like she can cut out a whole semester by taking one class in high school.
We still have to talk about the actual class choices she can take for science, or English, but that will hopefully be finished in the next hour or two.
Saturday, March 1, 2014
First Official Lesson
Sarah had her first "behind the wheel" driving lesson today. She got a bonus in her first lesson too, because it was snowing all afternoon, so she got some experience driving on the roads with no salt and that were not plowed either. I don't envy the driving instructor, because I have to do it daily, though he at least has the instructor's brake on the passenger side (I think).
Her instructor told her that she did very well, and he didn't have any real complaints about her driving other than she needs to work on her turns. He told her that she tends to enter her turns too early. She said that the kid that she was paired with almost got them in an accident, and that she was getting nauseous with the way he was being jerky on his braking.
Sarah can only schedule one behind the wheel session per month and she is able to schedule her next lesson in a couple of weeks. Now that she knows what she is doing, I think she may try to get it scheduled with another one of her friends. I think Kris and I may try working with her on some of the other skills she is supposed to learn between now and then (like Y-turns and parallel parking).
Her instructor told her that she did very well, and he didn't have any real complaints about her driving other than she needs to work on her turns. He told her that she tends to enter her turns too early. She said that the kid that she was paired with almost got them in an accident, and that she was getting nauseous with the way he was being jerky on his braking.
Sarah can only schedule one behind the wheel session per month and she is able to schedule her next lesson in a couple of weeks. Now that she knows what she is doing, I think she may try to get it scheduled with another one of her friends. I think Kris and I may try working with her on some of the other skills she is supposed to learn between now and then (like Y-turns and parallel parking).
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Honors Breakfast
Yesterday, Alison had what I hope to be the first of her Honors breakfasts at North. I think that there must have been about 200-250 kids there from the 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. We sat with a couple other friends of Alison, but she didn't want to talk too much. There were a lot of her other friends there too. I wanted to get a picture of her, but she was being cranky about it.
I offered to take her picture with a friend or two if that would get her to do it, and she thought that would be cool. Well a couple of friends turned into about 15, and then everybody's parents were taking pictures, even someone from the school. Now I wasn't about to wait in line to take my child's picture. In addition, some of the parents were just rather rude about it. That is the problem with taking pictures with your phone. Having to zoom in and out with one hand, while holding the phone up, and out in front of you. I swear, people who use their phones as the family camera just annoy me. Then, add in the people using tablets as their cameras, and you can imagine the complete cluster that was going on. And all because I wanted to have one picture. Luckily, Kris was able to get Ali's picture once she got back.
The guest speaker this year was a reporter/radio host from one of the local radio stations. He used to do stories on one of the TV stations, I don't think he does them right now on a regular basis, but he may fill in a little bit. Apparently, he had a couple of daughters who went through our school system. Who knew? Anyway, I thought his speech was very good. Hopefully Alison was paying attention.
I offered to take her picture with a friend or two if that would get her to do it, and she thought that would be cool. Well a couple of friends turned into about 15, and then everybody's parents were taking pictures, even someone from the school. Now I wasn't about to wait in line to take my child's picture. In addition, some of the parents were just rather rude about it. That is the problem with taking pictures with your phone. Having to zoom in and out with one hand, while holding the phone up, and out in front of you. I swear, people who use their phones as the family camera just annoy me. Then, add in the people using tablets as their cameras, and you can imagine the complete cluster that was going on. And all because I wanted to have one picture. Luckily, Kris was able to get Ali's picture once she got back.
The guest speaker this year was a reporter/radio host from one of the local radio stations. He used to do stories on one of the TV stations, I don't think he does them right now on a regular basis, but he may fill in a little bit. Apparently, he had a couple of daughters who went through our school system. Who knew? Anyway, I thought his speech was very good. Hopefully Alison was paying attention.
Tuesday, February 25, 2014
Feelin' Like A Geezer
Today had to put my foot down with the girls' music. Now normally, I am pretty lenient on the kind of music that they listen to. I don't like it, but just because I don't like a particular style of music doesn't mean that no one else can listen to it. I try to let the girls find their own style. And believe me, there is some stuff that I hear coming out of thier rooms that just drives me insane.
Well I was in Sarah's room to help her with some math and she had her music playing, rap music (which I don't much care for in the first place), when I heard some of the lyrics. Quite frankly, it is the kind of stuff that would get a movie an R rating. And it isn't like it was a one time thing. The clown was saying it over and over and over. That was it for me. I made her get rid of it.
I thought back to when I was in high school and the kind of music I listened to, and I don't recall any language like that. I asked Kris and she agreed. Yeah, the music was loud and obnoxious and hacked off my parents, but the worst thing that the lyrics of the songs talked about were drinking, and partying all night long. Maybe there would be a song with some innuendo, but that was what it was, innuendo. It wasn't the explicit descriptions, dropping f-bombs left and right.
I feel like an old geezer who is yelling at the kids for playing their yeah-yeah records too loud. In that respect I maybe showing my age. But in another respect, I just don't see the point. I remember in HS one of my teachers saying something about the language that is used in some songs. A real artist has a point to it, to try and convey an idea, or a message. It is an important part of the overall work. But to just cuss, and offend for the shock value of it is not art, it is just that, to shock, and nothing more. That kind of "music" really has no redeeming value.
Anyway, now Kris and I are going through the music on the girls' ipods, and we are making them get rid of the music we don't approve of. I would have never thought that I would be "censoring" my children's choice in music, but then again, being a parent in 2014 isn't the same as it was 25 years ago.
Well I was in Sarah's room to help her with some math and she had her music playing, rap music (which I don't much care for in the first place), when I heard some of the lyrics. Quite frankly, it is the kind of stuff that would get a movie an R rating. And it isn't like it was a one time thing. The clown was saying it over and over and over. That was it for me. I made her get rid of it.
I thought back to when I was in high school and the kind of music I listened to, and I don't recall any language like that. I asked Kris and she agreed. Yeah, the music was loud and obnoxious and hacked off my parents, but the worst thing that the lyrics of the songs talked about were drinking, and partying all night long. Maybe there would be a song with some innuendo, but that was what it was, innuendo. It wasn't the explicit descriptions, dropping f-bombs left and right.
I feel like an old geezer who is yelling at the kids for playing their yeah-yeah records too loud. In that respect I maybe showing my age. But in another respect, I just don't see the point. I remember in HS one of my teachers saying something about the language that is used in some songs. A real artist has a point to it, to try and convey an idea, or a message. It is an important part of the overall work. But to just cuss, and offend for the shock value of it is not art, it is just that, to shock, and nothing more. That kind of "music" really has no redeeming value.
Anyway, now Kris and I are going through the music on the girls' ipods, and we are making them get rid of the music we don't approve of. I would have never thought that I would be "censoring" my children's choice in music, but then again, being a parent in 2014 isn't the same as it was 25 years ago.
Monday, February 24, 2014
Driving Progress
Sarah has her first driving lesson with the official instructor this weekend, Saturday to be exact. I have been letting he drive around town whenever I need to go someplace, like the grocery store, or to go check on Kris's dad. She is getting better. I think she is getting more comfortable behind the wheel. Her turns are getting a little better but she still needs to work on her speed control. She tends to speed up and then slow down, speed up and slow down. I think it will come with practice.
I took her out yesterday and let her just drive around town for about an hour and a half. I even took her out on the country roads where she could get up to 55, and took her through a roundabout. I figured that with all the stupid roundabouts the state has installed (is that the right word) lately, she needed to know how to go through them. I asked her and she said that it was something that they didn't teach in driver's ed. Maybe I'll think about taking her out on the highway soon. I noticed one other thing too. She tends to drift in her lane. We start on the left, then go all the way to the right, then back to the left. I'm not sure how to handle that yet. We'll see what happens after her lesson Saturday.
I took her out yesterday and let her just drive around town for about an hour and a half. I even took her out on the country roads where she could get up to 55, and took her through a roundabout. I figured that with all the stupid roundabouts the state has installed (is that the right word) lately, she needed to know how to go through them. I asked her and she said that it was something that they didn't teach in driver's ed. Maybe I'll think about taking her out on the highway soon. I noticed one other thing too. She tends to drift in her lane. We start on the left, then go all the way to the right, then back to the left. I'm not sure how to handle that yet. We'll see what happens after her lesson Saturday.
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