School Starts in Less Than a Month....

[RandomAnthony]

School starts in less than a month. Now, this doesn't impact all of us, but the implication, of course, is that autumn will arrive soon, too. You ready for school, students, teachers, parents? You ready for summer to be over, non-school people?

I love the word "autumn", by the way, much more than "fall".

[smetchie]

I'm freaking. My daughter starts Kindergarten this year.

[Donitello]

Gretchen, I'll see your freakout and raise you a knifelike stab through the gut, which I got when I read the title of this thread. Sympathy pains for my husband the high school teacher....

[RandomAnthony]

The start of kindergarten was pretty cool for all my kids, except for the last I guess, who didn't want to go. But we lucked out in that we had the same teacher for all three, and she was awesome...the teacher makes all the difference. It's all about making the kids feel safe and welcome.

[Sandi]

My son is going into 8th grade at the public middle school this year. He's been at a Lutheran school since kindergarten. I cannot tell you how worried I am about switching him at this point. He'll be going from a 7th grade with a total of 26 kids to an 8th grade with 250 kids. As soon as the school office opens later this month, I need to have a meeting with the principal and try my damnedest to get him into the GATE program. I turned in a GATE nomination form last year, but the lady in the office failed to give me a teacher nomination form or tell me that I needed one. On the very last day possible, the district called and left a message on my answering machine telling me that they needed a teacher recommendation by 3:00. I get home at 4:00. When I picked up the enrollment forms, the office lady didn't tell me to fill out the immunization record on the medical forms. The forms clearly state that they are to be filled out by office staff from the immunization card. When I returned the forms, she acted like I was completely stupid for following the directions. I should have used ESP to know that I had to fill those forms out. Then, she forgot to get my proof of residence. I got the call that they needed it the day before the office was to close for the summer. The office closes at 3:00 every day. Fortunately, my husband was able to go down and provide that information.

It's now August 8 and 8th grade orientation is on the 25th. We have received absolutely no information from the school about orientation. We have not received a calendar or anything telling us when school starts. I don't even know what time school starts. I managed to get some dates from the PTA's June newsletter that's posted online, but I have no information beyond that.

Am I freaking out needlessly or will my son end up getting totally lost at the big middle school?

For the record, my daughter attended this middle school 13 years ago, but she went from the public elementary. This is my first experience with transferring a kid from private school to public school.

[Sally, la reina]

Good gravy, Sandi!

First of all, your son will be fine.
Second, it sounds like the GATE program isn't for him. There wouldn't have been this many roadblocks if it were truly something he needed. The teachers would know.
I predict that coming from such a small school to a large one will be a refreshing change of pace for your son, who may have been feeling stifled by the lack of social opportunities.
8th grade is a blast - don't worry!

You have over two weeks before orientation. What else do you need before then? A flier telling you when to be where?


Here, drink this big glass of morning chardonnay.

[Félix]

How did you keep that wine cold in the car this long? And how did Sandi get in here?

[[deleted user]]

Gee stay awake Larry you're driving!

[Sally, la reina]

My cooler has all sorts of refreshing treats. Here, have a gogurt.

[Félix]

I'm beginning to think we're going around in circles.

[[deleted user]]

That's because you always turn left at the stop signs.

[Félix]

I don't remember any stop signs.

[Sally, la reina]

I think it's Jim's turn to drive for a while. Larry needs a trunk nap.

[Félix]

Mmmm ... that gogurt is good. Yeah I'm ready for a nap.

[[deleted user]]

A trunk nap Sally?

[Sally, la reina]

It's a cool, dark place.

[Sandi]

Sally wrote: "Good gravy, Sandi!

First of all, your son will be fine.
Second, it sounds like the GATE program isn't for him. There wouldn't have been this many roadblocks if it were truly something he need..."

Actually, my only roadblock is an elderly office lady who shouldn't even have that job because she obviously hates it. I've honestly never encountered anyone quite like her in a position working with the public.

If my son wants to go to college, he absolutely needs to be in the GATE program now. Going to high school from private school, he could test into honors level course. Going from public school into high school, he needs to be in GATE. The GATE program in our middle school is really misnamed. It's actually the honors program and that's how kids track into the AP program at the high school. Our schools are so freakin' competitive. Students need at least a 4.2 GPA to get into the UC system. In some of the lower achieving schools, a 3.5 is sufficient to get into a UC. Now, I'm not saying that my son has to go to a UC. If he finishes high school and decides to go to a Cal State, community college, or a trade school, that's fine. I just want him to have the opportunity to go to a UC if he chooses to. To do that, he has to be tracked correctly now.

[Félix]

Sally wrote: "It's a cool, dark place."

*thinks twice about getting in the trunk*

Why do you have to roll me up in that old rug?

[Sally, la reina]

Sandi, good luck to your son. I hope he does well in this program and is able to go to his college of choice.

[Nuri]

Wow, Sandi's all over this. : )

My parents demanded straight A's, piano, and SATs and assumed college would just kind figure out of good scores. They had no idea what APs were, nor did they care much for my involvement in clubs. They didn't consider that sports and extracurriculars might factor in -- and they can make all the difference.

A 4.2?? Really? This depends on which UC he wants to attend, no? WOW, things have changed since my high school years. I mean, I knew it was getting more competitive, but I didn't know 4.2 was the minimum.

[Nuri]

I love my school, but I'm starting to realize it might have helped if I'd chosen a private school. I'd never been in a class bigger than 140 before college, so I didn't have anything to gauge myself against, but I think now that I work much better with some personal attention and in a smaller group setting.


As for the topic: I'm not ready for the summer to end. I'm half-excited about some of my classes, but mostly, I dread taking the MCATs. Time is going by too quickly for me right now.

[Sandi]

Nools, the UC system is set up to take the top X% from every public high school in California. At our local high school, a 4.2 GPA is about the bottom of that. My daughter graduated in 2001 and barely got into UCLA with a 4.3 GPA. Her best friend, who scored one point lower did not. That same year, our paper ran a series of articles where readers got to choose one girl's prom dress, shoes, hair, etc. The profile on this girl was that she went to one of the minority schools and had a 3.7 GPA. At her school, that was good enough to get her into UCLA.

[Nuri]

Hm. 2001? I graduated in '06, and I don't think those were the standards, quite, and I'm not convinced GPA is always a strict determinant. I thought maybe a mix of GPA/SAT scores, then participation and a strong demonstration of personal motivation were better for my application. I.E. It's important to have good numbers, but the numbers don't promise anything.

I attended private for grades 7-12, so I don't know much about the public high school and UC system agreement. There was a program, though, where if you were a senior with a strong enough standing, the UC system would guarantee entry into at least one of their schools, if that's what you mean?


UCLA is nearly as competitive as Cal these days, though. I know a surprising number of people from my year who made Berkeley but not LA.

[Sally, la reina]

I think Nools makes a strong point about GPA only being one factor among many at some schools.

[Matthieu]

Ha, my GPA is a source of humour around my house... but I don't find it terribly amusing.

I applied to Berkeley back in the day (heh), but not to LA. Guess it's not worth speculating the outcome...

I have to move out on the 14th (of September), by the way...

I hate college.

[Félix]

Move out?

[Matthieu]

Matriculate.

[Félix]

Ah.

[Knarik]

I always loved the beginning of the school year! Even when I was at the elementary school. First of September is one of my most favorite days!!! I can't wait when my classes at collage will begin.
By the way, autuman is my favorite season.

[Sally, la reina]

Me too, Knarik. I love everything about the cliched "back to school" shebang, as well as the temperature, the smell of the air, and the feel of fall.

[Nuri]

"Back to school" shebang? What? :D


Same. Fall is maybe my favorite, but I also really like winter. And, as of this summer, I also really like summer. Each has its charm, I guess. : )

[Félix]

So what's wrong with spring, Nools? Huh? ;)