OK, technically not really, but she did call me up at home and politely chew me out. Here's what happened:
Beau Brummel's parents were out visiting us last week. Jedi invited them to come to his school to eat lunch with him twice. They went and brought their own lunches both times. No one gave them a hard time. Everyone had fun. Please note that last year at Jedi's old school which is K-3 parents are allowed to drop in any old day and eat lunch with their children. If you want to buy a school lunch for yourself (as a parent) you must tell the school in the morning so they have enough food for you.
Today I went to Jedi's new school (4th-5th grade) and when you enter the school you must state your name and purpose for entering the school before they will buzz you in. ( Opal*Q, here to eat lunch with Jedi.) You are observed by a security camera as you do this. I went to the office and signed in and put a visitor sticker on. Then I went to the lunchroom and tried to buy lunch for myself and HotDog so we could eat with Jedi. I was told that a) I could not buy lunch because they do not prepare the food at the school, but have it delivered and so would not have enough and b) I must go to the office and get permission to eat lunch with Jedi. (I had already told them I was there to eat lunch with Jedi.) So I went back to the office and asked the secretary if I could eat lunch with Jedi, she said yes, but I couldn't buy lunch there. HotDog and I left and went to a nearby sandwich shop and got lunch and came back. We ate lunch with Jedi and had a good time. For some reason he likes to sit with the girls (who are on one end of the table) instead of the boys (who sit on the polar opposite end of the table with about 6 feet of space in between). During lunch, I noticed that the teachers and other adults were whispering among themselves and looking at us. I just assumed this was because parents don't often come to school to eat lunch with their children.
When I got home I got a call from the principal of Jedi's school. Here's what she said:
It is inappropriate for me to come to school and eat lunch with Jedi and that they only allowed it for his grandparents because they were visiting from out of town. The school only lets parents eat lunch with their children if they are having trouble at home and need to spend more time with them. The school does not have enough room or food to support parents coming in to eat lunch with their children and she didn't want to open up that possibility. There is nothing written about this particular situation in the school handbook, but probably now there will be. By fourth grade the school wants the children to be more independent from their parents.
I was a little annoyed with the whole situation myself. What is the big fat deal if a child wants their parent to come to school and eat lunch with them once in a while? Honestly, have I ruined their push for independence by breaking this unwritten rule?
Even though I like the schools in our area for the most part, I am starting to get a better idea of why we have so many home schoolers in this town. The bureaucracy is very strict without a real reason to be and makes it difficult for children to have educational experiences outside of school because they only allow for 5 days of educational experience outside of school for the entire school year. All I can say in conclusion is, "HUMPH!"
4 comments:
Argh! How frustrating. Sometimes it feels strange giving up control of your kids to an institution that thinks it knows best. They take this concept to the extreme in France.
I don't think I'd be allowed to eat lunch at my daughter's school at all. They are so strict about siblings, strangers, food and allergies. Who knows? I might be contaminated with a peanut butter shmear.
I just heard an anecdotal story from a 1st grade teacher about a parent asking that in addition to the school having a copy of a parent's car insurance and driver license to drive on a field trip that the school be given a list of all medications that a parent takes. Now that is a slippery slope...
Dwayne, CA is crazy! Someone who recently moved from there said that their school had to fire the music, p.e., science teachers and the librarian because the state didn't have enough money and also that their school day was from 10-2 and they get out at noon on tuesdays and thursdays and this school was in South San Jose!
Yes, in France they are pretty rigid and it seems absolutely normal to me how they reacted. But it still seems stupid. Alas! That is why we went back to Cambridge!! Coton school is SO COOL! They are so nice with our kids who don't speak a word of English. Really, in France, the teacher would be horrible to those kids who are a pain in the neck, not understanding anything and being there only for 9 months. They would leave them in a corner and get on with the rest of the class. Satsuki is at a different school for the time being, but the principal is SO NICE! The school has chickens and Satsuki just loves it. They all learn French at school, so she feels so self confident. I could talk for hours about school education...
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