November 12, 2009
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What happens when you make mommy mad
My son’s teacher is a socialist!!!
My son was sent to school at the beginning of the year with 12 pencils. He kept them in his desk in his pencil box. That should have been plenty of pencils to last him the year. The problem….the teacher makes sure each child has 3 pencils at the beginning of each day sharpened before the children come in to school. The teacher has been TAKING MY SON’S PENCILS and using them for children who need pencils. Here is a note that all parents received this evening
Oh, yeah….I totally buy that the generic yellow sharpen better NOT!!!! It is just easier to steal from the children who have extra and makes it harder for those children to PROVE that the teacher is STEALING their pencils.
What is my answer to that? My child is a low income child. I sent him with enough pencils to last him a long time but she took them for other children. I am sending him with 4 pencils that look like the picture below. Try to STEAL those…..
I am NOT HAPPY WITH HER RIGHT NOW!!!!!
Comments (36)
I would take a different approach. Tell her that he will not be keeping pencils at school because they tend to get stolen (don’t tell her you think she’s the one stealing them). Send him to school each day with three sharpened pencils. If three don’t come home, call the teacher to find out why.
@radicalramblings - she is the type who would claim he must have lost them.
I will admit I am being a bit passive aggressive. What can I say it runs in the family LOL
I was tempted to send 0 pencils in and just let him get the ones other parents provide….but that wouldn’t be right. So I labeled his.
I can understand how this would be annoying, but I think a better approach would be to buy what is asked at the beginning of the year and not buy any more pencils. If she takes his, then she can ensure that he has more when the ones he has that she hasn’t taken away are used up. Simply refuse to buy more. That seems like the best solution to me….If he only goes to school with a certain amount, she cannot take any more away from him.
@Pensamientos@revelife - but then I would be making other parents supply my child’s pencils. I could do that. I could even use the excuse that we are poor but would that be right?
@Kristenmomof3 - You aren’t asking other parents to provide your children with pencils. You provided your son with enough pencils to last…it is not your fault that the teacher took them away..she took them away, she can replace them
@Kristenmomof3 - Actually asking them to supply what their kids already took from him via the teacher isn’t wrong IMHO.
ugh, I don’t miss that stuff. Most schools around here have you send items that get put in a “community” bucket of sorts, and every couple of months we would get notes to send more stuff! Most of the time I refused, after all I sent 24 pencils with each child at the beginning of the year (which would last a long time, IF they weren’t going to pass them out to other kids.
Yikes! Teachers need to learn a thing or two about problem solving themselves.
Elementary School Teachers are ……. not cool
@Kristenmomof3 - @radicalramblings - Right or wrong, the teacher in question is following a familiar policy of providing sharpened pencils each morning in the classroom. Our primary teachers do that at King. Of course, those pencils were not bought by the teacher, but were provided by the parents. (And, as a Custodian, dumping the trash, I have seen a fair share of pencils in the trash that could have been used (more than two inches long), and should have been saved)
I think putting Wayne’s name on the pencils will not solve the problem, but will highlight that there is a problem. Please, tell her that Wayne is to only use his own pencils, and you will provide more when Wayne actually needs more, then only provide two at a time.
That’s one way to track a thief.
I hope it works.
I wanted to mention that I just published a link, on my blog, to my latest article about Jesus, Mohammad and the Holy Spirit, in case you’d like to read it.
@pb49r - I like your way of thinking
The main thing is, it needs to be (calmly) addressed to the teacher that Wayne will ONLY use pencils supplied by his mom.
Kristen that reminds me of something I’d do LOL
Sheesh. It’s such a pain when people do stuff like that. Has she become a second grade student? I thought stealing was something that second graders tend to grow out of…obviously she hasn’t.
LOL! This is so funny cause I would have done the same thing. We think so much alike it’s funny! Love it. They do that at my sons school too and it really ticks me off.
I’m not sure I see the bi deal. pencils are SUPER cheap. practically free. I totally get the low-income. I’ve been that way most of my life. but pencils are so easily come by.
plus do you really think she realized it was inconsiderate? it seems to me it’s just one of those things teachers do. think of it from her prospective – if she had to call home b/c johnny didn’t bring any pencils that day, instead of getting one from another student, how much time would that waste? who knows, maybe wayne is getting paper from another kid? I’m sure it would all even out.
now if it was shoes, I could see your point!
don’t we pay enough taxes to the schools for them to have a budget to buy basic supplies? i’m not talking about all the extra fancy stuff, but paper, pencils, crayons, glue and scissors? I don’t recall an elementary classroom growing up that didn’t have at least some of each of these- and i attended a low end school.
I tend to agree with Henny Penne;
Yeah, I “get” the low income thing too (we aint got money to burn either) – but really – how important is it? If it really really botherd me – I’d talk to the teacher; but still – I think the ‘ol WWJD addage applies here. If Jesus sent his baby sister to school and several of her pencils turned up missing – how do you think he’d handle it?
I can understand the classroom environment too – I worked in an office for many years and pens and pencils were always in short supply. Sometimes they’d turn up behind desks and stuff like that – but they were always disappearing for one reason or another. After all, they are rather easy to loose.
@MsModestFashionCents - I’d have to agree with you on this one. anger of pencils is kinda pointless. unless you think she is targeting your son for some reason then I guess that should be addressed?
I would be pretty upset too especially if we didn’t have a lot of money. I hope she doesn’t steal his pencils again! If she does you should call her out on it.
I wish she’d just ask you for supplies for everyone at the beginning of the year. This would drive me batsy. Am I the only one, though, who remembers being TOLD to write their name on their (school supplied) pencil when it was issued to them in grade school? I recommend carving a tiny bit of the paint off at the tops of the pencils and writing it there… I think the ink will rub off with the sweat of little hands, in time.
They are pencils. Get over it. 20 pencils or more costs less than $2. Sometimes a lot less than that. Quit being so selfish.
I’m not exactly sure what the problem is. Are you suggesting that if a student does not have a pencil, then they should just go without for the day? If your son has enough pencils to share, I guess I don’t understand why he should have twelve pencils in his desk while someone else is sitting there with none. As far as the teacher’s note goes, don’t buy anymore. You bought enough pencils for the year, and apparently some other parents didn’t. Let them cover the rest.
Just as a side note: socialist does not equal thief. But thanks.
I come across things like this all the time while working with children. Labeling the pencils is a good idea since it will at least let everyone know where your sons pencils are even if it does not stop the teacher from taking them for classroom use, that is unless she scrapes off the labels. She is right that yellow pencils sharpen better some of the others are no longer painted but have a plastic design coating melted into them that causes them not to sharpen well. The teacher is trapped by the system most likely. The point of the socialist style classroom is to provide for the children whose parents could care less if they have supplies. Yes, this does “steal” (take something without asking) from the children’s whose parents make sure their children have more than enough. Her only real options are to either let the children without supplies do nothing all day and fail over and over at school simply because they have no supplies in which case she will probably get fired. Or she can continue to “steal” from the kids who have parents who care thus spreading the childcare burden over a larger group, or she must buy supplies for these children herself which I’m sure that most teachers could not afford to do. Most schools have made this type of sharing/stealing school policy so if your school is one of those she really has no choice in the matter at all. I will say that buying pencils is preferrable to picking a fight with a teacher whose classroom your child is going to be stuck in for the next few months. Teachers can really make a childs life hell if they choose to.
I am sorry but I feel like this is a temptest in a teapot…pencils are SO easily lost, broken, traded around amongst the students. I would be hesitant to lable the teacher as the sole person responsble for the missing 12 pencils. I would also try and keep in mind that if you watch your sales ( which I do because I am in charge of “Operation Christmas Child” at church and am ALWAYS on the lookout for inexpensive school supplies!!) you can pick up a box of 24 pencils for a dollar or less. Don’t let yourself get all stirred up over this, and don’t lable your teacher as a “socialist” and make it more difficult for you to deal with her as you will be doing for the next few months. I bet if you look at home you can find more than enough pencils just lying around somewhere in the dark corner of a drawer to keep Wayne supplied for the rest of the year!!
Ruth Ann
It’s hard to believe a teacher would do that. that’s awful.She should have sent notes home to the parents letting them know there were students who couldn’t afford pencils would it be possible for those parents who could afford it to send in some extras for others.What you did was a very smart, sly, and mature way to handle it. There is no mistaking now huh?? Good for you.
I just read this post and it angered me. I taught school for 2 years. For each year that I taught, I spent over $2000 of my own money for my students out of pocket without being reimbursed. (That is not any amount that my family could afford) I also put in 60 hours a week preparing lessons, grading, and getting the classroom ready for the students. To be upset about something as small as pencils really frustrated me. There is NO WAY to keep track of 20-25 kids pencils and make sure that each students receives the exact pencils that were bought by his or her parents. It can not be done. Unless you want you child’s teacher doing nothing but monitoring supplies all day long and not teaching what needs to be taught. It is easier for all of the students to throw all of the pencils in a community “pot” and make sure that each student has a pencil each day. To say that the teacher is stealing is bull. Sharing is what you have to do in the classroom. There is no way around it. I can guarantee that the pencils with his name plastered all over it are going to end up in some other child’s hand as well. THAT’S HOW A CLASSROOM WORKS. Appreciate what your child’s teacher does for your child. If you don’t like what she does, home school.
@jillp073104 - The pencils are not put in a “Community pot” you will see that if you read my post before you get angry. The children are to keep them in their own pencil boxes that stay in their desks. The pencils are theirs NOT COMMUNITY PROPERTY. so the teacher went into his desk and into his pencil box to take pencils for other students NOT a “COMMUNITY POT”
they are pencils. students move around teh classroom, they get left in odd places, they work with partners and they are switched without knowing it. You can get an entire box of pencils for less than $1.00. This whole post seems ridiculous to me. Especially knowing what a teacher does for her students. Go spend a day in her shoes and you will see what I’m talking about. If it were shoes, or books, or backpacks that were being taken, I would be upset, but they are pencils. come on.
ps. the yellow pencils are easier to sharpen. the pencils with plastic coating ruins the blades on the sharpeners and jams them. plus the lead in them is usually a better quality and breaks less easily.
@jillp073104 - But they were in his desk. They may just be pencils but they were his. He is very careful about keeping them where they belong. She was taking them out of his box….taking something that was not hers to take and giving to other students. These 4 pencils will now stay in his box where they belong and he will have them to use for a long time.
Children are taught it is wrong to take something that is not yours wether it be a 50cent toy or a 50 dollar toy it is wrong to take what is not yours.
I would have no problem with the teacher using the pencils if they were to be put in a “community pot” that would be fine. That is not how it is done in this school district though. We are expected to provide pencils and erasers and a box for them to be kept in their desks for them. Those are to be theirs. So for a teacher to go take them and give them to another child is stealing as they are not community property.
So from this point on they are getting their names written on them.
@Kristenmomof3 - then why don’t you talk to the teacher about it rather than act childish and obnoxiously write their name on it. if you explain that you can’t afford new ones and that you don’t appreciate her going into his desk, she will realize that this is a problem for you. She may not even realize that this is a big deal to you. It just seems childish to make a big deal out of it. Especially knowing what teachers do for their students and their families.
@Shy___Away - Backatcha. Socialism DOES equal theft. What entitles someone to the resources of another individual? That a third party does the redistribution does not diminish that fact that the laborer has been deprived of their property.
Kristenmomof3
welcome to the new Amerika.
@yorel - If that is how you feel, then I hope you have never utilized a public school, driven on a public road, used a public library or sent your child to a public university.
@Shy___Away - Dispite having to endure public education, two of my sons have successful graduated from private universities, two are continuing their education at private universities and one is planning on a private university after getting what he can at the public high school. Some public things just can’t be avoided, but I wouldn’t call it socialism, except perhaps the HOV lane on big city interstates. Clearly a socialist, elitest idea.
@yorel - I find it odd that you would not call it socialism, because, well, that’s what it is. Redistributing wealth through tax dollars is a socialistic practice. However, this redistribution has been widely approved of, as it benefits society as a whole. We could take away funding for public schools, and demand that everyone pays out of pocket for private schools, but even if there was no such thing as taxes, that would mean a large majority would not be able to afford to go. We could refuse to pay for roads (after all, I don’t even drive, I don’t need concrete!) but then we’d be back where we were in the 1800′s, and we would only be able to comfortably travel about five miles away from our houses. We could pull funds for the police department and the fire department, and just do some sort of annual subscription to a private company, but most people probably wouldn’t, so the next time there was a fire, we’d go up like a box of matches.
Apparently we disagree, and that’s fine, but sometimes, theft is ok.