Cowgrit and I went to the end-of-quarter parent-teacher meeting with Calfgrit7’s teacher. He’s doing well in school, and this, of course, makes us very proud. But trying to make sense of the grading system makes us [read: “me”] confused.

His teacher showed and explained to us the grading forms she uses (as set down by the state board):

On math, the grades are A, B, C, D — C and D are good; A is bad. It was hard for me to get excited for all his Cs and Ds.

Other subjects apparently have points and stars. At one point, she said, “He’s at a four points on these two, so I can give him three stars.” Huh? “He got three-plus on these two, and a three on this, so he’ll get a three overall.” Huh?

In kindergarten and 1st grade, the grade scale was 1, 2, 3, 3+, and 4. 1 = does not “get” the skill; 2 = below grade level for the skill; 3 = knows the skill (at grade level); 3+ = knows and is able to apply the skill (a little above grade expectations); 4 = able to apply skills to expanded situations (above grade level), or something like this. It was different than the old standard letter grades I was used to, but it made sense once explained.

After we understood the new grading system, we could easily follow it on his report cards. He was always getting 3s, 3+s, and 4s. His 2nd grade teacher says we’ll still be seeing the 1-4 scale on his report card, but she wanted us to see the workings behind the numbers. That’s great, and I appreciate her showing it.

But it’s like the people behind setting the grading system for one skill (say, math) don’t talk or organize with the people setting the system for another skill (say, reading). One is rated as a letter (with A being bad, and D being good — directly opposed to the traditional scale), another is rated with stars, and another is rated with numbers, etc. What the hell?

Think of the poor teachers who have to work with these varied systems. The education bureaucracy is insane — they must have gone to public schools.

Bullgrit
bullgrit@totalbullgrit.com

The boys and I were out walking around the block. Calfgrit3 was a dinosaur stalking the neighborhood, and Calfgrit7 was an explorer. On our trek we saw a dog wandering around. The dog was loose but not a stray — it had a collar.

We watched it run around ahead of us for a while, but it kept going the same direction we were going, so we weren’t catching up to it. It strolled back and forth across the road, and I was afraid it would be hit by a car. The road isn’t heavily traveled, but it is a thoroughfare between the neighborhoods, so the cars that do drive down it go fairly fast. (It’s posted as 35, but everyone drives 45.)

The boys and I set about trying to catch up to the dog. I had my cell phone with me, so we thought we could call its owner after we caught it and checked its tag. We ended up following it for about 50 yards before we finally got close enough to get its attention. But then it ran through some bushes and got away.

Oh well, we couldn’t help it. Then a minute later it appeared 50 more yards ahead of us, back out on the sidewalk. We tried to catch up to it again, and this time I got it to approach me. I held out my fist to let it smell me. It took a couple of sniffs and before I could get ahold of its collar, it bolted away.

It ran fast and far, back the direction we had just come. Then it ran across the street into the other neighborhood. Oh well, again. The boys were excited about trying to help it, and I would love to have rescued it. We used to have a dog, and she got out of the yard and wondered through the neighborhood once or twice, too.

If I was alone, I would have followed this dog and tried again to catch it. But with the boys, I couldn’t. Calfgrit7 could have kept up with me and he knows safety, but Calfgrit3 is too young to be running with me along a road like that.

I hope the dog eventually found his way back home. He was a pretty dog, obviously well cared for and probably loved by a family. But he was just so flighty, and fast he could get a long distance quickly without realizing it, and he may never get back home.

Bullgrit
bullgrit@totalbullgrit.com

We’re down to less than two weeks till we leave for Disney World. We’re all very excited. I think Cowgrit is the most excited, followed by me. Both boys are anxious, but they don’t yet understand just how fantastic Disney World is, so they don’t really appreciate how exciting it will be.

For the past couple of days, and for the next few days, Cowgrit and I are planning the specifics of how we’re going to go through the various parks. We’ve got lunch reservations at some of the best restaurants (with some of the characters), so we have to plan around that. We know some of the attractions we want to see/ride are very popular, so we have to plan to get to them early or at slower times of the day, And we need to have rest and nap times for Calfgrit7 and Calfgrit3, so we have to schedule that in.

The funny thing I know is that no matter how much effort we put into this planning of it all, I’m sure the schedule is going to be blown to the wind within an hour of entering any park. If we actually make all five reservations on time, I’ll be surprised. But, planning, for Cowgrit, is half the fun of this whole escapade.

Bullgrit
bullgrit@totalbullgrit.com

Getting the boys all rounded up in the evening, getting them to clean up their room and the den — their toys seem to just explode to fill all available space in those two rooms.

Then getting them into the bath, washed, and then out of the bath.

Then reading books.

Then herding them to bed. Then getting them quiet. Then getting them still. Then getting them quiet again. Then getting them still again.

. . . five minutes . . .

Then getting them quiet and still again.

. . . ten minutes . . .

Then getting them quiet and still again.

Then cleaning up the house.

Even co-working with Cowgrit, this whole thing sometimes is just so exhausting. I think it was especially bad last night because I haven’t gotten any good exercise in three or four days. I just felt blah. I just wanted to lie down and go to sleep.

But going to bed so early means I miss the only couple or so hours in the day where I could do stuff I need and want to do, like write or play a computer game. If I go to bed and go to sleep, when I wake up in the morning I realize I’m just starting the whole thing over again from zero — I haven’t advanced.

I really need to get some exercise. I really have to get up out of this blah. I went to bed early last night, but today, I’m going to get exercise some how some way.

Bullgrit
bullgrit@totalbullgrit.com