A Letter to Our Son's Teachers et al...

[M.D. Holloway]

I got a note today from one of our Son's teachers stating that he was disruptive - telling her that she wasn't doing a good enough job at teaching them and that he thought it a waste of a class. For the record, he has got'n straight A's in this particular class which happens to be English. Not bad for a kid with dyslexia right?

Anyway, seems as though he doesn't want an easy A but rather to actually work hard and earn it. OK - gotta give him props for that but to be disrespectful is a whole other matter.

I sent out this not to his teachers and copied the principle and assitant principle. We know all his teachers pretty well.

Dear Teachers,
It seems as though our son Maxwell has been testing his limits lately. While he may be exhibiting good behavior in some classes he is disruptive in others. This will not be tolerated to any degree. We understand that each child is dealt with on an individual basis and that punishment is given according to certain factors. In Max's case by no means are you to let even the slight infraction slide by. We want you to ride him like a Rodeo bull.

In all seriousness, he exhibits great leadership skills as well as a certain personality and work ethic that may take him very far in life. He has overcome learning challenges yet with a small amount of his success comes large amounts of confidence that borders on cockiness. Any sign of disruptive behavior or disrespect on his part must be disciplined completely and shared with us so that we can also share in the discipline effort. He has a very bright future if guided correctly. It is our job as parents to do that and we ask that you help us in that effort.

We have entrusted our son in your care which means you have our full support in disciplining him to the fullest extent of the law. Please allow us to extend apologies to any one of you that have had to deal with his disrespect or disorderly behavior. His actions will not be excused. Trust in this, it will be dealt swiftly and accordingly.

We look forward to having you help us make him the man he can be. Thanks again for your hard work and dedication to all the children. We know that this is part of the job that is not fun and frankly we as parents do not enjoy it either but if we do not trim this behavior at the bud it could blossom to a rather ugly and useless mess.

Thank you again and sorry on behalf of our son,

[on2wheels52]

I'll wager they don't receive many letters like that.
Jim

[steves31]

when you excel in something you become bored really fast then you become disruptive he needs more challenging material or something to do.

[motion]

Is this just a ploy to get a photo of his teacher?

[12own911]

Nice letter to the teachers... Good on you.

[HHI944]

Originally Posted by on2wheels52

I'll wager they don't receive many letters like that.
Jim

It's a damn shame, but +1

Good on ya for the tough love lubey

[scottmandue]

At least they didn't say he was obsequious.

[968rz]

Originally Posted by steves31

when you excel in something you become bored really fast then you become disruptive he needs more challenging material or something to do.

Speaking from personal experience this is 100% true, if he's doing that well and is becoming "disruptive" he needs greater challenges. He even said so himself. See if the school can move him to a higher level class or at least give him harder assignments until his grades start to drop some then back off just a bit.

And I think if more teachers received letters like yours they would feel much better about the job they are doing; we need them to love their job if the world has any chance.

[Baz]

Awesome letter - it will serve you, your family, and most importantly your son well.

Carry on....

[vonsmog]

Not saying your son is right, but he might just be! Having a girl who is gifted with an IQ of over 150, she would get into trouble like this at times. Come to find out she was right and the teachers weren't doing their job!! We went round and round with one teacher, who was more interested in selling real estate than teaching, and would just send our daughter to the library for the day instead of challenge here at all. So don't always believe what the teacher says, some just want to skate by and collect a pay check and don't give a rats ass about the kids.

Oh, and my little girl is now getting her PHD in neurology at Emery, and still questions everyone!! Of course she has been published three times already and is on the fast tract to great things in the future, so she gets away with it still!

[M.D. Holloway]

Yup, I know why he feels the way he does but my direction for him is to attacke it differently. He can't go around and challenge his teacher in front of the other students - thats disrespectful and should not be tolerated.

FWIW I asked him "Why would you give up an easy A to give your teacher a hard time? Doen't you know your looking at more work now and maybe tougher grading?"

His response was "Dad, I don't mind having more work or being graded tougher, I just don't want to waste my time..."

[ninelevenick]

As a middle school English teacher I applaud that letter. Any teacher worth his or her salt will sense that these parents don't make excuses for their boy. All they ask for is consistancy and an open line of communication with the teachers. If only all parents were like this.

[BReif61]

Originally Posted by steves31

when you excel in something you become bored really fast then you become disruptive he needs more challenging material or something to do.

Another +1. Find if there is an accelerated program.

[targa911S]

as the father of a 7th grade teacher...I applaud you.

[ben parrish]

Well written and I am positive it will be well received.

[kanadary]

nice letter... have you thought of private school if there's no accelerated programs in your area? i know all parents think their kids are smarter than the rest but in your case it does sound like that. i don't think my daughter is any smarter than the rest of the class but in her case she was finishing all her class work and homework while the rest of the class was half way thru it.. she wasn't disrespectful to anyone but when she got home she would always say, why can't we work at a faster pace.. its boring.. we put her in private school and she's doing grade 8-9 math and english in grade 6. they can compensate for individuals. atleast this school can.

[Chocaholic]

DHS will be knocking on your door at any moment. The liberal child welfare contingent will certainly read "between the lines" and take measures to protect your child from the swift and abusive punishment that your letter "clearly" alludes to.

[M.D. Holloway]

He txt'd me just now to txt him back his grades. We check these almost everyday on-line. He is getting mostly B's a few A's and two high C's (79s). I txd him to "meet with each teacher and set out a game plan to get 90+ in each class. That he was better than his grades reflect and to do this not for us but to do this for himself. No one ever regreted getting good grades in school, they only regreted not getting good grades. I also txd him that we would help and encourage and breakdown any barriers and provide the resources for success, it is up to him to put in the focus concentration and work required to achieve excellence."

His response "KK". A man of few words...

[wdfifteen]

I was a rebellious kid. This would have just pissed me off and made me push back harder. YMMV

[VINMAN]

Excellent! I have to show my wife tonight ( a teacher)

When I used to go to open school night with my parents, my father would tell all the teachers, " If he steps out of line, smack the shyte out of him. Then call me so he can get it again when he gets home".