The Tail Wagging the Dog

I don't know when it happened but in our school district it seems the tail is wagging the dog.
My oldest daughter came home the other day from being a Big Sister at one of the elementary schools. They decided to take the kids out to the playground a few minutes before dismissal. While on the playground she said a bunch of highschoolers came and started smoking, swearing and making out. Mind you these are teens she knew. A few of the young kids commented saying it was disgusting and the Big Brothers/Big Sisters used it as a teaching moment. My daughter told her charge, "Now you know what not to do!" I couldn't be more proud of her and the others who spoke up but I raised a question: Where was the adult who supervised the BB/BS? My daughter said she was there but didn't speak up. Am I crazy to be incredulous! She should have marched over and demanded they leave school property immediately or she would call the authorities....it's what I would have done. Regardless of the fact that she is not a school employee she is in charge of the children while they are in her care. Why didn't she say anything? I can only guess....indifference or fear maybe?
I believe it's a dangerous trend in our schools.....the tail wagging the dog or rather the students running the school. I hear the stories my kids tell about fights breaking out between two girls and a male teacher standing by not pulling them apart because he "can't touch them", students who constantly swear and what can you do when some teachers swear openly in classes, students who openly defy and disrespect teachers, barely acceptable clothing being worn and not called to attention when there is a dress code, thugs on buses who feel the need to bully those around them and brag about being stabbed and nothing gets done. This is York Suburban....what has happened?
I am not old fashioned only brought up to believe that we should have respect for one another. Is it fear that keeps anyone from speaking up? Fear of students, fear of parent reprisal, fear of lawsuits or all of the above? When did adults become afraid of teenagers? When did they decide to try to be "friends" with the kids thinking it will give them an advantage when disciplining? When did swearing in the classroom become acceptable for teachers? I am angry that my children's education is being disrupted by these kids...how dare they! What right do they have to act this way? The adults need to take back control of the schools and start enforcing the rules. The good kids work hard and do the right things and they have earned the right to a school free of violence and questionable behavior.
The good kids outnumber the bad ones and I only hope that they will stick together and let it be known that it is not ok to act this way....it is not ok to disrupt our education....it is not ok to call people names and it is not ok to disrespect teachers.
I understand that some of these kids don't have the support system at home that a lot do but it can't be used as an excuse anymore. You are responsible for your actions and there are many great people who have excelled in life who have come from broken homes, no parents, poverty etc. They need to be made to understand that the education they are being offered is a gift. A gift that will lift them to unimagined heights if they let it. A gift that will enable them to not be confined by the limits of minumum wage. A gift that will allow them to debate issues with intelligence and poise not guns and knives. And all that is being asked of them is to be a respectful member of the school by following some rules and treating everyone with dignity.
Am I asking to much to want the dog to take back control of his tail?

The World of High School

I have 3 girls in HS. Need I say more. I hear on a daily basis the goings on....the arguments with friends, the fights, the heartbreaks, the crushes, the teachers, the work. I listen and try to be as sympathetic as I can and dispense the best advice I can remembering my own teen years. Sometimes it helps and sometimes not so much. Most times they are able to handle things themselves and it takes all my restraint not to get involved.  If there is one thing I could get them to understand completely it is that there is a world outside of high school.
  Teenagers don't see around corners only what is right in front of them and right now high school is their world. As narrow and small as it may be it is an important part of their life. I tell them all the time to enjoy these four years with their friends and not get bogged down by the little things. The problem is that the little things to me are big things to them: once close friends who now are distant, boys who are oblivious to the attentions of girls, teachers who pick favorites, the struggle to be popular, the search to figure out who they are and their place in the world. I can see around the corners.....I know that these things are fleeting moments in their lives. They will fall away and be forgotten like an autumn leaf.  Friends and boys will come and go, popularity is fleeting and it is your responsibility to learn whether you are the teachers favorite or not. What they will remember are the good times with friends, the pride of winning a game, the sense of accomplishment and applause of the crowd after a play performance, the teachers who took the time to make a difference and will not be forgotten, the kindness with which they treated others and the integrity with which they conducted themselves and stayed true to themselves.
It's my job as a parent to prepare them for what is to come but sometimes it's an uphill battle. Their hearts and emotions often override their brains. Sometimes I feel like Sisyphus pushing the boulder up the hill only to have it roll back down. But I keep pushing. The best I can tell them is to be yourself whomever that may be, work hard and most of all have fun and hope that they at least will start to peek around those corners.

A Divorce of Siblings

Having 2 teenage girls who don't get along is like having 2 female tigers as pets....they may be fine at first, cuddly and cute but at some point they could snap and take everyone down with them. Such is the problem we are having with our oldest and one of our twins. So after trying our best to help them get along and having our mediator (Kelsey) try to come to an agreement we have decided it is time for them to 'divorce'. Drastic you say? Yep it is but for the sanity of everyone else in the family we have decided it is for the best. There will be no more sharing of clothes and shoes, no asking for help on homework and no speaking to each other. We have issued a parental restraining order on both of them at the behest of our attorney, Morgan L Plonk Esq.
 Maybe in the future when they have more maturity and distance and less hormones they will once again be able to reconnect as sisters and realize what the bond of sisterhood is all about but for now a divorce is best.

New blogger

Well here it is, my first blog! I was inspired by a few people who have interesting things to say so I thought why not me! I can't guarantee mine will be as interesting but if nothing it may be entertaining!