Been awhile

I can tell school is going and things have gotten a little hectic.  I'm not on here writing nearly as much.  School is going all right.  I'm ready for parent teacher conferences.  It is a bizarre way to get information when it is through the perspective of your 5 year-old.  Things are certainly skewed.  I'm hearing lots online all of a sudden about Common Core.  I haven't heard anything earlier and now all of a sudden there are lots of posts on Facebook against it.  I finally read an article on NPR that basically stated that some people are for it and some are against it.  Well, gee.  You don't say?  Isn't that the case with anything?

I'm trying to find a bit less biased information about it.  I want to talk to Bear's teacher and see what she knows about it and/or her opinions as a teacher that may have to implement it.  From what little I know it appears to be a way to try to get all the states on the same program so a kid moving from state to state doesn't have to go back a grade or jump a grade depending on the state they moved from.  That seems like a good idea but it will be interesting to see what the actual implementation involves.  Like I say though, I really don't know what it is.

I saw one comment (those always make for good entertainment) that basically said parents who didn't know about Common Core weren't involved in their children's education.  Hmmmm... I take issue with that.  I don't know what it is but that is because we are about 4 weeks into a 13-20 year stint of schooling.  Maybe we don't know as we've never heard of it before because we are new to the school system.  Ever think of that?  Oh, wait, or it is a NEW program by the looks of things.  Uh, with new things the word needs spread.  Just like with a new product of any kind there needs to be advertising.  Not all of us are glued to the t.v. 24/7.  A lot of us haven't seen a commercial in a very long time.  Or we see very limited numbers of commercials.  So maybe, just maybe the word needs to be spread in more than one way.  I like to think I'm involved in my kid's education but I haven't a clue what this is all about.

As you can see, I have issues with many random commenters online.  I think the simple fact that they can hide behind a computer screen makes them say things they wouldn't necessarily say otherwise.  I know it can be true for me.  I'm guilty too.  I'm sure not exempt from saying stupid things.  In fact I can be pretty good at it.

Anyway, what it boils down to is that I will be doing a bit more research.  I knew this education thing would be the hardest part of parenting for me.  Home school vs. public school.  Parent clubs, volunteering, and random competitiveness of other parents.  I don't really get it.  I didn't get it as a student let alone now as a parent.  As a public school product I see the value in public school.  I also see its many flaws.  Home schooling has its flaws too.  I think both sides of it need to implement things from the other.  I absolutely think public school needs supplemented by the parents.  Some districts/states more than others.  I also think that the home schooled kids need more exposure to the frustrations of working in large groups of people.  Some people do this better than others.  I think one of the best public school lessons is learning how to be your own person despite having them try to stuff you into a mold that they want you to fit in.  Conform and follow rules without losing yourself.  It is a tough lesson to learn.  No matter when it is learned.  Some of us are better at different parts of it than others too.

I'll get off my little rant here.  I hear that the laundry needs swapped and our weather is getting yuckier so I need to make sure things are battened down.  I don't think my poor chickens have even poked their heads out of the coop.  Windy, rainy, and cold.

UPDATE: Here is the actual Common Core link: http://www.corestandards.org/  I've just very quickly scanned it so far.  What I'm seeing is that it looks like any other school curriculum.  My guess is that the issues all come about in the implementation just like in any curriculum.  And it also answers why I haven't heard much about it.  I live in one of the five states that has not adopted it.  Interesting.