Fourth grader suspended over LEGO toy gun

[G27]

Uh oh, I guess Memphis will have a bunch of detached retards runnning around trying to make it in the real world.

What do you mean "will have"?

[Guest CrazyLincoln]

Gotta love schools these days. It's ok to be intolerant to another person's ideas or intelligence, as long your are tolerant of his (or her) skin color, gender identity, and sexual preference......

Oh by the way, let's practice out of sight out of mind. I mean, if we don't allow anything that remotely looks like a weapon, kids will never attack each other, right?

[jgm219]

Gotta love schools these days. It's ok to be intolerant to another person's ideas or intelligence, as long your are tolerant of his (or her) skin color, gender identity, and sexual preference......

Oh by the way, let's practice out of sight out of mind. I mean, if we don't allow anything that remotely looks like a weapon, kids will never attack each other, right?

That's the theory I guess. No one's ever been attacked with or been killed by someone using a rock or stick.

[Guest Sgt. Joe]

What do you mean "will have"?

Now that is what I was thinking

As for this homeschooling thing I will tell ya's "My" why.

Last year after my daughter was threated with "I will kill you because I hate white people" by a thug-kid in her class I went to the principle.

She told me that it was out of character for this kid to say such a thing even though he had admitted it, I took her word for it.

The kids behavior continued and he was joined by several others in picking at my daughter and the other few girls in the class. She was then threatened with being raped and with "I'll send my Mommy's boyfriend over to kill your whole family".

I again went to the principle and demanded the kid be punished and he was given 1/2 day in school suspension. The in school suspension teacher was out that day so the kid received no punishment.

It got to the point it was happening every day, yet my many complaints to the principle and to the School Superintendent fell on deaf ears. I finally had friend who owns a Private Detective agency check into this kid.

That was when I learned that the kid was only going to that school because he had been kicked out of the one he was supposed to be going to for...?... Behavioral problems.

I also found out he and and his mom were attending anger management classes and that the mom was the teachers sister (first year teacher no degree) and also that the principle and the teacher were sisters in law !!!

So as it turned out both the teacher and the principle had stood in my face and lied to me about this kid, their concern was the protection of the kid in question with no regard to my daughters safety, or that of any of the other girls in the class either for that matter. It was after finding all this out that I made the decision that I did and pulled all three of my kids out of this School System. I was not the only parent to do so. None of the kids involved in these threats and in several cases actual fights were ever disciplined by this (also first year) principle.

Jackson is "Slap full" of thugs and therefore so is the school system full of the offspring of these thugs. I do feel sorry for some of these kids and what they have to go home to each day but a good amount of them bring that thug culture into the schools with them. That jeopardizes my kid's safety and I did what I felt was best.

I could write for days about Jackson's high crime rate and the correlation with having one of the worst rated school districts in the nation, but all the stories would end with......there is nothing being done to change the situation.

We at one time had a school board member who was living in CA....YUP, and we currently have a city councilman who works for FEMA and is out of town except for a few days a month, he has missed many many more meetings than he has ever attended but is still re-elected every time. I could go on and on but I think you get the picture here.

And I dont mind telling you that it is anything but easy to home school these critters, my wife has a Masters in Edu. and was a teacher years ago so that helps. But it is still no picnic, I have always said being a Dad was the hardest job in the world, well add home schooling to that it only makes it harder.

And yes at least there are a couple days a week that they go to a homeschooling group at the Y for classroom and Gym time. It does help to break the cycle of them being home 24/7 and gives them some social interaction.

I do not intend for this to be a permanent thing but until I can move to some where that has a school district and school board that cares about education rather that covering each others butts they will get their schooling at home.

As for the Glory Glory song I do remember it but dont ever remember letting any teachers or my parents hear us singing it. And of course there never was no intent that I know of, of anyone actually wanting to do such a thing.

As for the OP I can support a zero tolerance for real guns or knives and even some toy versions. But this case of the small Lego toys is just stupid, take the toy away chew the kids butt at home and at school and move on, a suspension is over the top in this case IMO.

Oh yea Jackson has a zero tolerance for bullying....so much for that ehh?

[jgm219]

Sgt. Joe - Davidson County has the same zero tolerance for bullies and by that they concentrate on the one being bullied asking questions like "how does it feel to have him hit you" or even "what did you do to deserve this". After my son being threatened and my wife being threatened with rape (all by a third grader!) we did the same as you. The only thing we got from the principal was "Well, ******* has some at home issues so we just have to be patient with him." "I work for DCS," I said, "I've got more than patience." Some school systems have a hard time believing that some kids do indeed copy what they see at home or are just plain wanting to be bad. Some parents don't get that whole lead by example and deeds thing. Being a dad or mom is hard indeed and homeschooling and homeschool co-op classes are more than demanding at times but definitely rewarding.

[Guest Sgt. Joe]

Sgt. Joe - Davidson County has the same zero tolerance for bullies and by that they concentrate on the one being bullied asking questions like "how does it feel to have him hit you" or even "what did you do to deserve this". After my son being threatened and my wife being threatened with rape (all by a third grader!) we did the same as you. The only thing we got from the principal was "Well, ******* has some at home issues so we just have to be patient with him." "I work for DCS," I said, "I've got more than patience." Some school systems have a hard time believing that some kids do indeed copy what they see at home or are just plain wanting to be bad. Some parents don't get that whole lead by example and deeds thing. Being a dad or mom is hard indeed and homeschooling and homeschool co-op classes are more than demanding at times but definitely rewarding.

Well thanks, at least I know someone understands where I am coming from. and you working for DCS know just as well as I do that it is the Parents that do not parent that causes these problems in the schools.

I was told at one point by the principle that they found it hard to suspend the kid because his mom was a single mom and would have to miss work. While I can sympathize with such it does not translate into anything good for my or anyone else's kid's education. Maybe a few days of lost pay would force these parents to actually Parent.

Of course in this case those in charge of doing anything were related so the "pass" was given over and over again.

I was just reminded by my wife as we returned from our sons B-ball game a bit ago (we finally won one:)) that the kid in question was awarded the perfect attendance award at the end of the year. Anyone else sent to in school suspension is counted as absent,(but since he never even served that???) also if I have to pick the kids up a bit early it is counted against perfect attendance. The kid was the only winner of that award.

Home schooling does have it's rewards along with its pitfalls and some states such as FL give parents who choose to do so $1000.00 a year to help offset costs of computer classes and things like the groups at the Y. Of course TN does not.

It is my desire to move back to the district in FL where I spent most of my time in school and is always rated in the top five in the Nation rather than the bottom five.

Thanks for what you do for your job.....IMO it is as important as Police Fire or Soldiers these days. And yea, I am sure you have MUCH more than simple patience, if you didnt you would be there.

[jgm219]

Thank you as well, Sgt Joe and thank you for your service to our nation. I wish I was still with DCS but I'm one of the folks who are currently still looking for employment. That was four years ago and DCS was the best posting I had in my ten and a half years with the state. I was an accountant but even we were kept up to date on the cases we paid invoices for. Before retiring, my uncle did his last duty station at NAS Jacksonville and he loved it so much he stayed there. Of course, it didn't hurt that he met his wife there during his last year in. His wife was from Gainsboro (sp?) and she homeschooled both her children with excellent success. At the time I thought nothing of her homeschool experience in Florida but after reading your post I'm actually giving it more thought. You know, my mom once told me, after my son was born, that parenting is only hard if you don't try. Maybe that love thing helps too. ;-)