<p>tpshorty: I was going to add the Mission project.</p>
<p>Whoever said Third Child Slump, I am right there! After having two low maintenence, responsible, and independent girls I am now deeply enmeshed in the karma of having it so easy for so many years. My DS8 (DD’s are 18 and 22 now) hates homework and fights it every step of the way. The nightly reading the author posts is, indeed, emotionally painful for both of us. And as DS is still only in second grade I fear we have only met the tip of this iceberg called parent homework torture.</p>
<p>I definitely have checked out in this avalanche of end of the year paperwork and constant last minute pleas for Boxtops, Terra Cycle items, permission slips, volunteering, lunches and carnivals. I dread the last day of school truckload of “memories” that I know will come. </p>
<p>I cannot imagine multiplying that by five. </p>
<p>With the difference between my 3 kids and their school habits I have fast realized that you should never pat yourself on back until well after college is over.</p>
<p>bevhills and TPtShorty- the dreaded mission project. I didn’t mind the report but building the mission. I was dreading it when child 2 started 4th grade. Luckily the stars were aligned when the teachers decided that the students would design their missions with a partner and build them in sand at the local beach. I wonder if most Ca mothers end up hating the 4th grade, Ca history. The Mission report, the indian report and it seemed like an never ending number of field trips. Not to mention in our area the field trip to the Channel Islands where half the kids get sick on the boat ride. The experienced Mom knows to not sign up for that one. I also learned after the first kid to try not to get the new teacher who did not yet have children. While they were youthful and full of excitement and new ideas they had no clue that you don’t tell the student to bring supplies for a project the day before you want it done.</p>
<p>Memory of the Mission project. I was a volunteer in the classroom, so the kids really kind of “knew” me. As the kids worked at home on their missions they did reports about living in the wild west and the life of these pioneers.</p>
<p>Saman (not a typo, he is a Persian Jew) came from an amazingly wealthy family. We were studying some rare pictures of settlers. One picture was a family, mom, dad, and a bunch of kids standing proudly in front of their home.</p>
<p>Saman: Ellebud, where are the servants?</p>
<p>Ellebud: They didn’t have servents. The whole family worked together to survive.</p>
<p>Saman: Ok, where did the servants sleep?</p>
<p>Ellebud: Saman, they didn’t have servants they worked together. And the house for that time was very nice.</p>
<p>Saman: Mrs. Ellebud where are the servants></p>
<p>Me: Cleveland.</p>
<p>Now that my son is almost 18, I’m covered in bruises from kicking myself over the years. Third Grade Science Fair. My son assured me he knew exactly what he needed to do. He came up with the topic of “Why doesn’t a satellite burn up when it orbits Mercury?”
He did the research, made the aluminum foil satellite, painted the cardboard space scape. His Dad cut the tennis ball in half, but S painted and attached “Mercury” to the display.
The Fair was at night, and the students stood by their projects and answered questions posed by the visitors. Imagine my surprise when we entered the Science Fair to see all the students (but my son) standing next to tri-fold cardboard displays, 75% of which were
“Phases of the Moon”! It wasn’t until the following day did I find the project directions, mashed up, in his backpack. There were topic suggestions, one being “Phases of the Moon”
of course, but not my son’s topic. Luckily my son’s teacher appreciated independence and originality and my son earned an “A”. Unfortunately, not all of his teachers have felt the same way.</p>
<p>entertainersmom, I kind of like that story! I know exactly how you felt in that situation though, and even the A doesn’t take the sting out of feeling like everyone feels you are a negligent parent for letting your child work on his own (egads!).</p>
<p>My kids always insisted on doing the projects themselves (they knew my limitations 
). So in elementary school they always had the projects that looked like a child had actually done them. My favorite line was “don’t buy anything, use what you have at home”. Yeah, right. My house had the basics like construction paper and crayons, other houses had basements that looked like an aisle at Michaels. It was a huge revelation to me that some people actually had animal print fabric on hand in their home. Who knew?</p>
<p>As for the grades, last fall at back to school night, a parent in one of S’s classes mentioned that he looked on line daily to check his child’s grades. Several parents nodded in agreement. I guess I am the outlier as I only check the interm reports and report cards. I didn’t even know the daily stuff was online. After I found out, I still didn’t check it. His grades are fine.</p>
<p>Maybe because I just have one child, or that I like crafts, but I rarely minded projects. I have several velvet capes and a toga, wigs, etc. I was fine outfitting other boys. I remember making a video of the boys: one in my leather jacket, another in an apron with blonde pigtails, etc. I have lots of hats too.</p>
<p>Son’s science project was an eclipse, which meant a box covered in aluminum foil, holes. I’d say it was 90% his. My role was artistic director. He’d lay everything out on poster board, and I’d encourage margins, help with colors of text. </p>
<p>My issue was with teachers who wanted the child to draw every object. why couldn’t they find an image on the computer? One teacher tried to convince me he needed to draw, not depend on a computer. Really???</p>
<p>Fortunately, the kid had a Rabbi in 2nd grade who did not ask for projects, and taught my son how to use the internet. Thank goodness for a male teacher.</p>
<p>This thread reminds me of the thread from a number of years ago about school projects. I’ll try and dig it up another time (have to run now).</p>
<p>The worst one for me was last year - My then 7th grade DD had a group film making project.</p>
<p>She attended a school that had kids attending from probably a 30 mile radius. We live south of the school, and one of the group members lived in the boonies NW of the school, close to an hour and a half from our house. Of course, most of the filming was done at that house, after school on weeknights.</p>
<p>So I’d have to leave work, which was even further south, and drive up to get her. And of course, the filming took longer than expected. So we’d get home late, late, I’d be up early for work, and it was repeated over a few days.</p>
<p>Just one kid here, but still, I laughed until I cried. This. Is. So. True.</p>
<p>And you moms with big families: you are saints.</p>
<p>Thank God my third child is a girl!! I never have ANY issues with her. She does her homework, studies, plays jazz piano in the band, runs cross country and track, and is HAPPY! She likes all of the teachers that her older brother thought were horrible. Interesting how that works!</p>
<p>The working mom version of a Tiger Mom: driving kids to school at 7:59 (school started 14 minutes ago). Boy child says “I forgot – today I have Sharing” (show and tell).</p>
<p>It’s too late to turn around and go home and find something he can show to the class. Out of the corner of my eye, I see a scar on his arm from when he fell off his bike. “See that scar? Talk about that.”</p>
<p>My daughter went to elementary school in Chinatown in Manhattan, NYC, with many Tiger Moms and dads parenting her classmates.</p>
<p>On day 1 of Kindergarten, the teacher told the kids and the parents that she didn’t want to see parents’ homework but wanted to see kids’ homework. My daughter took that command to heart and still does. Lucky me! Lucky her! I am NOT an artisan!</p>
<p>I am a third grade teacher and go out of my way to not assign “Mommy Homework.” As my own kids have grown up I have greatly lessened the amount of parental involvement. I no longer require signatures on reading logs and homework folders. I do not assign reports, diaramas, or projects outside of class. About the only request I now make is to help your child prepare a 5 to 10 minute activity to share on VIP day. Parents are not present for this. Bottom line- send your child to school everyday with a backpack and leave the rest to your child and teacher!</p>
<p>I am queen of the Project Haters. OMG-what a colossal waste of time, effort, and money. Didn’t end with elementary school either. D is a sophomore. This year’s English had a huge project due end of first semester. 3 parts to the project.</p>
<p>Second semester even better–teacher told them on Wed. of last week of school (finals the following week) about a huge project due…she wasn’t sure when…a complete surprise to the students and she even had the audacity to write a note about not complaining, use materials found at “home”, and it should be FUN.</p>
<p>She’s 23. I hope karma gets her.</p>
<p>Just got emails from 2 school secretaries–school ended 2 weeks ago and I haven’t turned in the registration forms for my soon-to-be 3rd and 6th graders. Oops. Hope I can find them here somewhere. . .</p>
<p>I have 7 kids and have been doing elementary school since 1993. (Wow–was that before internet?!)
Actually, I was homeschooling for some of those years. When I put all my kids in school–with 5 of them in 3 different schools, plus one in college, and another preschooler at home, I was surprised how much easier it was to homeschool than to keep track of all this stuff. Didn’t have to pack lunches or drive anywhere. No carpool negotiations (still have to figure that out for next year.) Plus we could all sleep in and avoid the morning rush.</p>
<p>I can no longer muster any enthusiasm for the school carnival, the Daddy-Daughter Dance. And those special transitions to middle school and high school–the 5th grade and 8th grade graduation ceremonies. Gag. Chairmoms are hounding me for months to provide photos of each child as a newborn, and as a Kindergartener, and this year. . These are my 5th and 6th children. Can I just admit that I didn’t take any pictures of them?<br>
We have a first grade “make your own animal T-shirt” with the teacher- assigned animal-- I told my youngest D to “GET THE HEDGEHOG” (so we could recycle older sis’s shirt.) Unfortunately, she got the “bearded dragon” instead. And we let her ruin her own T-shirt. The teacher took her photo with the one other girl with the obviously student-made shirt. Yes, magic marker scribbles. Probably done in the car on the way to school. Animal completely unidentifiable. Both girls proudly wearing those shirts.
Fifth grade revolutionary war project posters and dolls (some British general and a female soldier. . .) have been saved–hoping youngest D can recycle these, too. I never want to sew another mole for Mole day (Do teachers really think I’m letting a teenage boy touch my sewing machine?) We still have a Mario (“Molio”) Mole, and a Rick Mole, for our future chemistry students. . .</p>
<p>My solution to those annoying homework logs? I taught the kids to forge my signature. Seriously. Made them practice until it looked enough like mine to pass. Done.</p>
<p>Speaking of Amy Chua, her offspring attend my school.</p>
<p>…and?</p>