10 of my favorite Parent statements through the Years!

In paranthesis are my responses:

1. I know my child and I know he would never lie to me. (You are living in a fantasy world, mom!)

2. Why don't you worry about the big things like drugs and weapons instead of
wasting your time bothering my kid about dress code and being tardy? (If I bother your child
about these "small" things, I won't ever have to worry about the big ones.}

3. If my child said F$#@ Y&% to you, what did you do to cause him/her to say that? (Are you kidding me?)

4. My child doesn't think that you like her. (I don't...but I still want to facilitate her educational
experience.}

5. He never acts that way at home... (Ha, ha,...that's a good one!)

6. Why are you stressing my child out with all these expectations? (Why aren't you reinforcing my
expectations at home?}

7. Don't talk down to me just because you have a college education... (Sure, I'll express my views intellectually.
The problem is that you won't understand a darn thing I said. So at least give your child the opportunity to
understand some day.}

8. My child says that you are boring... (Which rock did you look under that had a note stating that preparing
children for a solid education was entertaining?}

9. I've talked to many of my daughter's friends and they all say you called her on the carpet. (You are foolish
for listening to a bunch of teenagers that challenge anyone that facilitates brain function... and by
the way, you might try calling her on the carpet as well.}

10. My child is failing your class. What are you going to do about it? (Not a darn thing...he's failing because of
his decisions not because of my actions!}

Ten Statements made by Teachers that Enhance your Child's Education.

1. Your brain should be tired by the end of the school day because you challenged yourself today...not because
you wasted brain cells texting until 3:00 AM this morning.

2. Yes....spelling counts!

3. If you would like to do better in my class, take all electronic devices out of your room and hand your
cell phone over to your parents after 8:00 PM every night.

4. Who said anything about being easy?

5. Please use full sentences.

6. When a middle or high school student tells the teacher that they don't have a pencil, paper or their book
after the first week, the teacher's response should be..."That's your problem, deal with it".

7. When I'm talking...you aren't!

8. Work is an expectation, not an option!

9. Studying is hard...Digging ditches is harder!

10. Your parents owe you food, shelter and an education...everything else is a priviledge. If you decide to ignore
your education, there will be no extracurricular activities, no time with friends, no electronic devices, no
name brand clothes, no use of the car, no spending money, no dating, etc., etc.

The Way it Should Be!

The principal and assistants will be greeting the students at the door each morning and will walk the halls every moment of every day. If students walk towards the door out of dress code, they won’t pass through it. Students will have a right to the halls only if they are in proper attire. The disruption of electrical devices, inappropriate clothing and other peripherals will disappear. Language will be clean, appropriate and respectful. Students will address adults as Sir, Ma’am, Mr. or Mrs. They will not use words such as dude, dawg, or man in any conversations directed at adults. They can save that for the beach, the mall or their own back yards. Wouldn’t it be great to enter classrooms where the words, “Please”, and “Thank you”, will be embedded within the dynamics of meaningful learning?

Students that break the rules will face consequences every time. There will be no warnings, two-week adjustment periods, negotiations or deals. The warning is put in place the day the student is handed the student handbook. If it is a policy established by the school board, we will enforce it. Student consequences will be effective. Detentions will be served with a purpose. These students will scrub the desks, clean the walls, pick up the garbage and scrape gum from places they put it. If they must sit in a desk, they will write and write and write until they get it right! Major infractions will lead to suspensions and Saturday Detentions. If the infraction involved defiance or verbal abuse toward a staff member, the student will not return without a parent conference and a thoughtful apology written to the teacher.

Discipline will become the norm not the exception. Students will be on time in the morning and for every class. Students will take up the four minutes between the classes to get to class, utilize the rest room and get into their seats. They don’t need to talk to their friends, exchange hellos and greetings, and scurry to their locker. They need to plan ahead and prepare for the whole school day. There will be time for socializing before school, at lunch and after school gets out. Other than that it should be six hours of hard work, intellectual challenge, and critical skills development. They will engage their brain cells from bell to bell. Students will bring their tools of learning to class every day. No longer will well-planned lessons by teachers be tossed away because half the class doesn’t come prepared with pencil, paper, and books. I will not accept a statement from any parent or child that they can’t afford or have that paper or pencil when a cell phone or I-Pod is hanging out of the child’s pocket. Students should expect to be exhausted by 2:30 every day because of working brains not because of wasted hours of useless conversation, doodling or late night Facebook chats with friends.