My blood is boiling to the point that my head is pounding.
This will be lengthy because there is just no way to shorten it.
Granted, I am a softie, and granted, she is my baby and I'm sensitive to her, but still, I just don't get it. My daughter is a mere 5 years old and is in kindergarten. She purchases her lunch at school. What I am about to say next is admittedly an assumption, but it makes sense. When my son attended her school from grades 3-6, children were able to "charge" their lunch if they forgot to bring their money and/or had none in their account, but only to a certain dollar amount (I think one days worth) and then if their bill wasn't paid, they were given a plain peanut butter sandwich and milk. Thats cool for children at that age, I have no real problem with that. But this year, on the first day of school, I completely forgot to send money for her lunch because I was beside myself emotionally that she was starting school and I also had a ton of supplies to get packed that the school asked for that were "optional", and I was very distracted and upset. My fault, but it was not a problem, she was allowed to eat what everyone else had. Then, on the second day of school, I came back to school later in the day because I realized her envelope with her lunch money was still on the kitchen table, so I took it to her. Her teacher told me not to worry about it because they allow the children to "charge" their lunch. I was very relieved and determined the difference was that these were 5 and 6 year olds and they were being a bit easier on them which makes a hell of alot of sense to me. Why penalize young kindergartners for something out of their control?
Now, the problem. Two times prior to this morning, she has informed me that she has asked for juice, and was refused the juice. Juice does not cost extra, its an either/or thing, they get milk or they get juice. (I sent 8.00 last week, her lunch is $1.35 a day.) The first time, I let it slide. The second time, one week ago, when I sent her money for the week, I attached a note asking that they PLEASE allow her to have juice when she asks for it. I received no reply, but that afternoon she told me that she indeed had juice with her lunch.
This morning when I was packing her book bag, she said "I need money" and I asked her why, and she said because they won't let her have juice. I said "but why?" and she said she didn't know, that it must be because she needs to pay more money. Her little lip started quivering and then she started crying, saying "I don't know why, Mommy...I don't know!" I asked her exactly what happened and she told me that when she reached for the juice, it was TAKEN OUT OF HER HAND and she was told "no, you can't have that". OMG. I know how my child felt as she stood there, and I tell ya, I am hurt and I am pissed and I just don't get it. These are 5 and 6 year old children! First, regardless of their reasoning, don't these bitter pills come soon enough? I have tried as much as possible to keep "money issues" away from my children, they should not have those kinds of concerns and I don't feel it is the place of the school to shove it down her 5 year old throat.
Second, she had plenty of money in her account. Third, juice does not cost extra, so what the hell? I have tried and tried to understand, but regardless of anything I come up with...even if she somehow owed money, wouldn't her lunch yesterday have been a peanut butter sandwich and milk, which it was not? Further, as I said before, I feel 5 years old is too damn young to be forcing the "money lesson" on her, or any child. It's one thing for them to reinforce the "if you forget your lunch money, you suffer" lesson on older children, but 5 year olds are not responsible for this issue. We are supposed to put the money in an envelope and place it inside their daily communication folder that the teacher collects each morning, they are not supposed to ever have money on their person. The peer pressure they already feel in kindergarten is plenty enough because she wants to be like everyone else, and to stand there in that line and have that damn juice removed from her hands as they were saying "no, you can't have any" told her plain and simple that she isn't like everyone else. And no explanation was given, she was forced to "move along and deal with it."
Fuck with me over money, not my child.
This reminds me of when she hurt her wrist at home and the next day in PE, her teacher made her sit out because they were concerned that it was sprained, and didn't want her to injure it further. So, her PE teacher pulls her aside and says "you have to sit out today" and he walks off. That child sat there in tears the entire class thinking she had been bad and was in "time out".
She spent the remainder of the day feeling she had been punished, and never understanding "why".
To top all this off, on the way to school, some unbelievably insane isiot that apparently thinks he is *special* two cars back decides to pass the two cars ahead of him just about a mile away from school, with oncoming traffic that he proceeded to run off the road in just the nick of time. I saw what was coming as I was the second car he passed and I went off the road. THEN, the idiot, after leaving us in his dust, passes a third car, going up a damn hill, unable to see what is coming over the hill and surely he was doing 75 in a 55. Just as I guessed, he pulls into the school like a bat outta hell, flys around the circle and drops his precious cargo off, with 10 minutes to spare before the FIRST bell rings.
Fuck!
They're children. Our children.
I just don't get it. Any of it.
This will be lengthy because there is just no way to shorten it.
Granted, I am a softie, and granted, she is my baby and I'm sensitive to her, but still, I just don't get it. My daughter is a mere 5 years old and is in kindergarten. She purchases her lunch at school. What I am about to say next is admittedly an assumption, but it makes sense. When my son attended her school from grades 3-6, children were able to "charge" their lunch if they forgot to bring their money and/or had none in their account, but only to a certain dollar amount (I think one days worth) and then if their bill wasn't paid, they were given a plain peanut butter sandwich and milk. Thats cool for children at that age, I have no real problem with that. But this year, on the first day of school, I completely forgot to send money for her lunch because I was beside myself emotionally that she was starting school and I also had a ton of supplies to get packed that the school asked for that were "optional", and I was very distracted and upset. My fault, but it was not a problem, she was allowed to eat what everyone else had. Then, on the second day of school, I came back to school later in the day because I realized her envelope with her lunch money was still on the kitchen table, so I took it to her. Her teacher told me not to worry about it because they allow the children to "charge" their lunch. I was very relieved and determined the difference was that these were 5 and 6 year olds and they were being a bit easier on them which makes a hell of alot of sense to me. Why penalize young kindergartners for something out of their control?
Now, the problem. Two times prior to this morning, she has informed me that she has asked for juice, and was refused the juice. Juice does not cost extra, its an either/or thing, they get milk or they get juice. (I sent 8.00 last week, her lunch is $1.35 a day.) The first time, I let it slide. The second time, one week ago, when I sent her money for the week, I attached a note asking that they PLEASE allow her to have juice when she asks for it. I received no reply, but that afternoon she told me that she indeed had juice with her lunch.
This morning when I was packing her book bag, she said "I need money" and I asked her why, and she said because they won't let her have juice. I said "but why?" and she said she didn't know, that it must be because she needs to pay more money. Her little lip started quivering and then she started crying, saying "I don't know why, Mommy...I don't know!" I asked her exactly what happened and she told me that when she reached for the juice, it was TAKEN OUT OF HER HAND and she was told "no, you can't have that". OMG. I know how my child felt as she stood there, and I tell ya, I am hurt and I am pissed and I just don't get it. These are 5 and 6 year old children! First, regardless of their reasoning, don't these bitter pills come soon enough? I have tried as much as possible to keep "money issues" away from my children, they should not have those kinds of concerns and I don't feel it is the place of the school to shove it down her 5 year old throat.
Second, she had plenty of money in her account. Third, juice does not cost extra, so what the hell? I have tried and tried to understand, but regardless of anything I come up with...even if she somehow owed money, wouldn't her lunch yesterday have been a peanut butter sandwich and milk, which it was not? Further, as I said before, I feel 5 years old is too damn young to be forcing the "money lesson" on her, or any child. It's one thing for them to reinforce the "if you forget your lunch money, you suffer" lesson on older children, but 5 year olds are not responsible for this issue. We are supposed to put the money in an envelope and place it inside their daily communication folder that the teacher collects each morning, they are not supposed to ever have money on their person. The peer pressure they already feel in kindergarten is plenty enough because she wants to be like everyone else, and to stand there in that line and have that damn juice removed from her hands as they were saying "no, you can't have any" told her plain and simple that she isn't like everyone else. And no explanation was given, she was forced to "move along and deal with it."
Fuck with me over money, not my child.
This reminds me of when she hurt her wrist at home and the next day in PE, her teacher made her sit out because they were concerned that it was sprained, and didn't want her to injure it further. So, her PE teacher pulls her aside and says "you have to sit out today" and he walks off. That child sat there in tears the entire class thinking she had been bad and was in "time out".
She spent the remainder of the day feeling she had been punished, and never understanding "why".To top all this off, on the way to school, some unbelievably insane isiot that apparently thinks he is *special* two cars back decides to pass the two cars ahead of him just about a mile away from school, with oncoming traffic that he proceeded to run off the road in just the nick of time. I saw what was coming as I was the second car he passed and I went off the road. THEN, the idiot, after leaving us in his dust, passes a third car, going up a damn hill, unable to see what is coming over the hill and surely he was doing 75 in a 55.
Just as I guessed, he pulls into the school like a bat outta hell, flys around the circle and drops his precious cargo off, with 10 minutes to spare before the FIRST bell rings.Fuck!
They're children. Our children.
I just don't get it. Any of it.
Never once has she had to have the plain peanut butter sandwich and milk, so I am at a loss.
