Thursday, December 9, 2010

If You Live in the Mesa School District . . .

I just got a note home from school yesterday that says this:

"The Arizona Legislature has passed a law that requires that all school districts hold a public hearing to review the elementary recess practice and consider adopting a policy that would structure recess time."

Seriously? I went on the MPS website and read the proposal. Not only is it ridiculous to suggest that we take away what little freedom our kids still have left at school during recess time, they are also proposing that we shell out between $600,000 and $1 mill to fund the program, just in its first year, with $400,000 needed every year after that.

I oppose this on so many levels. I'm incensed, and I hope you can take the time to go to the website and leave your comment.
www.mpsaz.org/recess

And if you can, attend the board meeting 12/14 at 7 pm.

Where is the insanity going to end?

When are we going to just let them be kids?

GRRRR. I've got my dander up now.
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15 comments:

  1. I agree with you..this is just plain crazy! But then what else is new in this world, everything is crazy! ;D

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  2. Maybe they're scared that if they "just let Hyrum be a kid," he'll personally tear the swingset out of the earth and gleefully swing it around at one and all on the playground.

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  3. I went, I commented, I hope they listen! This is one of the most ridiculous things I've ever heard of. It's bad enough they tell the kids who to sit by at lunch, and whether or not they can stop eating, if their art is correct and how long their stories should be. Ridiculous! of course, I am moving...so maybe I should relax a little!

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  4. This just happened in my district as well. It is absolutely crazy! It is sickening what is happening to the public school systems.

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  5. Oh for the love. NOTHING is safe. You know, soon they'll force everyone with half a braincell to just homeschool, and then they'll be in even MORE financial dire straights. Seriously, it's all just so ridiculous!

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  6. Hear, hear. I would oppose this, too!

    Go, Jen!!

    =)

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  7. WOW! Thank you so much for posting that and getting the word out. I went and commented. What a terrible idea! Let them be kids!

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  8. I am so glad my kids are out of grade school. Mesa Public Schools have some really stupid policies. Don't even get me started. Even with my kids out of grade school...I will leave them my opinion on this dumb idea.

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  9. My goodness! I loved recess as a kid. I'd be irritated, too.

    By the way, I missed you while I was gone...upped dander and all.

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  10. all the fun of school's getting sucked out. it's so lame.
    my 8th grader & her classmates have been looking forward to a long-standing traditional trip (to an amusement park/water park) at the end of their year...basically a last hoorah of middle school before they head to the high school the next year. when i say it's long-standing, i soooo mean it! as in, both me and my husband went on this trip when we were 8th graders there...and it'd been going for years before that even. anyhow, a little of 4 weeks ago the school district put the big ki-bosh to it. when we parents complained, they told us if we wanted something like this then we would have to organize it as parents and that the school would in no way help us in advertising it to our kids, or with transportation, NOR give the kids a free day from classes! ticks me off cause it's in the last week of school when they're not doing anything anyways!!!
    on top of all that, the 8th grade graduation (lamely renamed the 8th grade "moving-up ceremony") usually has decorations, refreshments, and the kids have a dance...the school's only going to hold the ceremony, give out the certificates and pay for a DJ. any decor, balloons, or refreshments we parents have to provide (and none of it can be homemade)!!!!! dumbest thing ever.
    so whatever, we parents have met to tackle these issues, and then we get told that none of the kids can help raise money for any of it, because if the kids do the fundraising then their money raised is considered ASB money!!!! what the wha?!?! even if we are with them when they raise the money, then its ASB. so we parents have to raise it all ourselves.
    call me crazy, but i shouldn't have to sell wrapping paper door 2 door as a mom. i paid my dues, knocked doors, sold all sorts of crap as a kid so i wouldn't have to now! grrrrrrr......

    so i know it's not recess i'm venting over, but it's the same control issues with our district as well. sorry. it's all crappy. am interested to hear how the other parents react at the meeting. you must post updates on this please!

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  11. Wow, so they're proposing that you spend that much money to take away the kid's recess freedom? Ummm, does that make any sense? Why would they want to do this to children? Do they not like children? Man, I hope that it doesn't go through because it's just insane.

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  12. crazy! kids need recess & no it should not be structured! just to let you know what is going in here in Ohio. it has been a set standard that we have 5 calamity days (usually used for snow days). our governor thought it wise to reduce it to 3 days! most years we use between 3-5 days, sometimes more depending on the amount of snowfall. next year we get zero! it is not going well, because administrators don't want to use too many calamity days, so we send kids out in dangerous driving conditions! ugh! good thing this governor is only around for a few more weeks! again, another example of not using common sense! hugs, cathy

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  13. So who are these fun suckers, and why do they feel the need to ruin the one pleasure left at school? Jerks!

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  14. this is just crazy! i just learned that our neighborhood school just enforced a no running policy. so while at recess they cant play basketball, soccer, baseball...cause the kids aren't allowed to run....
    what are they gonna come up with next?

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