My adventures in school.

O' Be Joyful

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Truth from the mouths of children.

...and forced sadly, to grow up beyond their years.

When I was a pup we considered fire-drills to be fun, outta' class and into the sunshine for a bit, but now...it's closets as well as hope n' pray.
 

Matt McKeon

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...and forced sadly, to grow up beyond their years.

When I was a pup we considered fire-drills to be fun, outta' class and into the sunshine for a bit, but now...it's closets as well as hope n' pray.
I am infuriated by the whole colossal failure of our society around guns.
 

diane

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Shooter drills. Makes the duck n cover drills look rather stupid in retrospect! "When you see the glow, duck below." This was also the time when kids drove to high school with a rifle or two on the gun rack in the back window of the pickup, and a pistol under the front seat. Nobody was without a pocket knife. None of this terror happened then. Old folks used to say, quite a few years ago, "People have changed. People are different." Something has sickened us. Kids are precious, they're fascinating, they see things we adults can't, and they grow up too quickly. Fear stays with you for life, and beyond. There really is such a thing as generational PTSD.
 

Matt McKeon

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Massacre in Nashville. Seven dead. The AR 15 wielding killer is dead as well. Surprise! It was a 28 year old woman this time. Another all American day ending in y.
 

rittmeister

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Massacre in Nashville. Seven dead. The AR 15 wielding killer is dead as well. Surprise! It was a 28 year old woman this time. Another all American day ending in y.
america has a really useful answer to thast

 

Matt McKeon

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Doing the Civil War in class. Was a reading about Britain offering to "mediate" before the Battle of Antietam. One kid wrote the definition of "mediate" was "calm yourself, take a deep breath to calm yourself" That's meditation.
 

Matt McKeon

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A kid wrote in my World History class, when I asked for a definition of the Fifth Republic, that he refused to answer. "How many goddamned republics to they need?"
 

rittmeister

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Doing the Civil War in class. Was a reading about Britain offering to "mediate" before the Battle of Antietam. One kid wrote the definition of "mediate" was "calm yourself, take a deep breath to calm yourself" That's meditation.
come on, way to much fuzz for a single additional T, don't you think?
 

rittmeister

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A kid wrote in my World History class, when I asked for a definition of the Fifth Republic, that he refused to answer. "How many goddamned republics to they need?"
did they get the country right?




... and find it on a map?
 

Matt McKeon

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It was a tense day in US History II today. Someone was observing the class, basically because I had a felon in it, and there was some controversy about he being in school. Two other students had just come to class for the first time in weeks. The normal collection of kids were all absent for various reasons.
 

Matt McKeon

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It was a tense day in US History II today. Someone was observing the class, basically because I had a felon in it, and there was some controversy about he being in school. Two other students had just come to class for the first time in weeks. The normal collection of kids were all absent for various reasons.
I was trying to halfway recap the previous lesson about the Boston Busing crisis when another student who hadn't been in class burst. "These fucking, useless, I hate them, I hate them," he was in a rage. "Don't swear," I said, "what's wrong?" "Pennies!" John the new student was upset with the continual presence of the penny in our currency.

I told him I completely agreed with him about the penny issue.
 

Matt McKeon

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The lesson continued. John wanted to show me a video on his phone, but couldn't retrieve it, so I helped him with his work. The other young man had broken his hand and I helped him write.

The observer left and the student passed in their work. "If you could change one thing about the world, what would it be," I asked. "John and I wish to see the elmination of the penny." "Why the fuck do they have them?" John flared up. "Politics, special lobbying by Big Penny," I assured him. "Watch your language." One student said tax free tampons. The other said everyone should get a plot of land. 'You've been out for two weeks." I said, "What have you been up to?" "Learning German," was the reply. "Its a beautiful language."

We discussed the German language. The student was quite keen on it.
 

Matt McKeon

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I urged the student to visit Germany. "I have an exercise where I have to ask "How are things in Vienna?" Why? Who cares?" the German student asked. I replied: "Vienna is the capital of Austria, a German speaking state. I understand they are more laid back than the Germans."

I told my wife about this exchange. "Why couldn't he take German, and attend school?" she asked. "I don't know. I don't understand." I replied. she snarked "Maybe its the langauge barrier."
 

Joshism

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I heard an interesting comment recently from a teacher in Georgia. He said an increasing number of his students believe unilateral secession is a right due to the principle of self-determination. However, they also consider the Southern states secession in 1860-1861 to be for the wrong reasons (slavery).

When I raised the issue of unilateral secession being untenable because there are details that have to be negotiated, this teacher said their students don't care about the consequences.

@Matt McKeon how does that compare to opinions expressed by your students?
 

Matt McKeon

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I heard an interesting comment recently from a teacher in Georgia. He said an increasing number of his students believe unilateral secession is a right due to the principle of self-determination. However, they also consider the Southern states secession in 1860-1861 to be for the wrong reasons (slavery).

When I raised the issue of unilateral secession being untenable because there are details that have to be negotiated, this teacher said their students don't care about the consequences.

@Matt McKeon how does that compare to opinions expressed by your students?
We don't even talk about it as an issue: in isolation, some abstract right to secede. We concentrate on why the slave states wanted to secede.
 

Matt McKeon

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I heard an interesting comment recently from a teacher in Georgia. He said an increasing number of his students believe unilateral secession is a right due to the principle of self-determination. However, they also consider the Southern states secession in 1860-1861 to be for the wrong reasons (slavery).

When I raised the issue of unilateral secession being untenable because there are details that have to be negotiated, this teacher said their students don't care about the consequences.

@Matt McKeon how does that compare to opinions expressed by your students?
I'm trying to wrap my head around the idea that a high school student gives a flying fuck about unilateral secession.
 

Matt McKeon

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Several of the seniors in our program graduated with the high school's seniorsl I went to graduation, and was issued a gown with a master's hood.

It was lovely, except a lightning storm began to hit to our northeast. They started reading the names faster, as the wind picked up. Very dramatic, but everybody got their diplomas, no casualities.
 

jgoodguy

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Several of the seniors in our program graduated with the high school's seniorsl I went to graduation, and was issued a gown with a master's hood.

It was lovely, except a lightning storm began to hit to our northeast. They started reading the names faster, as the wind picked up. Very dramatic, but everybody got their diplomas, no casualities.
Any caps get airborne?
 
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