swamp
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Post by swamp on Mar 15, 2013 12:48:51 GMT -5
Are your kids expected to do projects? At what age? what's your thoughts on them?
This week, DS who is 6 and in 1st grade had to make a leprechaun trap using a simple machine (lever, pully, wheel, etc.) and decorate it.
I am the least crafty person in the world, so projects like that give me heart palpitations.
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vonna
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Post by vonna on Mar 15, 2013 12:57:13 GMT -5
I have an extreme hate for school projects.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2013 13:12:56 GMT -5
WOW! I haven't had anything like that yet (thankfully!). DD had a science project in October. They had to show something having a reaction, and the teacher sent home a list of things (NO VOLCANOES) and a website with ideas.
We did disappearing ink with lemon juice/baking soda and grape juice (write with the lemon/baking soda mixture and let it dry, use the grape to make the letters appear). I can't believe she was the only kid in the class to do it, since is was sooooo easy!
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cubefarmer
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Post by cubefarmer on Mar 15, 2013 13:19:56 GMT -5
2nd grade project - "Trace your family back to when they came to this country and make a family tree"
OMG
We've been here since the Mayflower and luckily an aunt had spent years doing the geneology. I wrote the family tree - what was it 15 generations? - OMG.
I should probably mention my special ed child was not reading or writing yet at that age.
And I made sure it was obvious this project was completed by me and the aunt and not my 7 year old.
We were in the application process for private school so I wasn't worried about a teacher smack down for doing the work. It was wholly inappropriate for all except for the children who came to this country recently.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Mar 15, 2013 13:22:35 GMT -5
2nd grade project - "Trace your family back to when they came to this country and make a family tree" OMG We've been here since the Mayflower and luckily an aunt had spent years doing the geneology. I wrote the family tree - what was it 15 generations? - OMG. I should probably mention my special ed child was not reading or writing yet at that age. And I made sure it was obvious this project was completed by me and the aunt and not my 7 year old. We were in the application process for private school so I wasn't worried about a teacher smack down for doing the work. It was wholly inappropriate for all except for the children who came to this country recently. Wow, that is pretty inappropirate for a 7 year old. There was a Catholic church fire here in the 1950's and all the records burned, so there is no way to tell who came over when.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2013 13:23:35 GMT -5
I got my Doggie's DNA done for Christmas. Do you think the teach would accept that as "close enough"?
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Mar 15, 2013 13:25:39 GMT -5
I remember the Leprechaun trap. That was a fun one. First time my daughter used a drill.
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Miss Tequila
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Post by Miss Tequila on Mar 15, 2013 13:26:01 GMT -5
2nd grade project - "Trace your family back to when they came to this country and make a family tree" OMG We've been here since the Mayflower and luckily an aunt had spent years doing the geneology. I wrote the family tree - what was it 15 generations? - OMG. I should probably mention my special ed child was not reading or writing yet at that age. And I made sure it was obvious this project was completed by me and the aunt and not my 7 year old. We were in the application process for private school so I wasn't worried about a teacher smack down for doing the work. It was wholly inappropriate for all except for the children who came to this country recently. We would have become second generation family
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Mar 15, 2013 13:27:24 GMT -5
2nd grade project - "Trace your family back to when they came to this country and make a family tree" OMG We've been here since the Mayflower and luckily an aunt had spent years doing the geneology. I wrote the family tree - what was it 15 generations? - OMG. I should probably mention my special ed child was not reading or writing yet at that age. And I made sure it was obvious this project was completed by me and the aunt and not my 7 year old. We were in the application process for private school so I wasn't worried about a teacher smack down for doing the work. It was wholly inappropriate for all except for the children who came to this country recently. We would have become second generation family I would have shown them my green card.
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Mar 15, 2013 13:27:46 GMT -5
I remember the Leprechaun trap. That was a fun one. First time my daughter used a drill. over achiever.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2013 13:29:03 GMT -5
No habla ingles!
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Taxman10
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Post by Taxman10 on Mar 15, 2013 13:39:11 GMT -5
2nd grade project - "Trace your family back to when they came to this country and make a family tree" OMG We've been here since the Mayflower and luckily an aunt had spent years doing the geneology. I wrote the family tree - what was it 15 generations? - OMG. I should probably mention my special ed child was not reading or writing yet at that age. And I made sure it was obvious this project was completed by me and the aunt and not my 7 year old. We were in the application process for private school so I wasn't worried about a teacher smack down for doing the work. It was wholly inappropriate for all except for the children who came to this country recently. We would have become second generation family I'd have done the same thing! I remember in biology in high school, we had to make family trees based on genetic traits like (eye color maybe?). How the f would the teacher ever know?? We all had hazel eyes.....every damn one of us!
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alabamagal
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Post by alabamagal on Mar 15, 2013 13:39:23 GMT -5
I hated school projects for the kids......
Honestly I hated them having homework....
And summer reading lists....
Did I mention that all of my kids somehow made it through school and are on track to graduate college early with high gpas.....
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swamp
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Post by swamp on Mar 15, 2013 13:43:28 GMT -5
I remember that project. We had a choice of Brown or Blue eyes. I have green eyes. I'm not sure where that fits in, but if you consider them blue, every single freakin' person in my family has blue eyes.
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vonna
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Post by vonna on Mar 15, 2013 13:56:07 GMT -5
In my experience, the myriad of school "projects" and "group" school projects have been such time suckers with very little gain.
But, the first project for my now high school senior son leaves a bitter memory:
He was in first grade, age 6. He was supposed to create a diorama in a shoe box of a habitat with inhabitants. So, I helped him by finding a shoebox, we discussed what type of habitat he wanted to create -- he chose the floor of a rainforest -- wanted to focus on the insects.
I helped him gather supplies, helped him with some of the gluing -- but it was basically his work, and it looked like a 6 year olds work. He was so proud of it, and went skipping off to school to turn it in. He came home in tears talking about how "horrible" his was compared to everyone else's and how the other kids laughed at his when he had to present it to the class.
I figured out why he felt so bad later that week when they were all displayed at an open house. Looked like most of the kids had very artistic parents, some projects even seemed to have a lot of money in them, either that, or he was in a class full of child prodigies. That was my first realization of how competitive "many" parents have become to make sure their kid is the best. . . .and it sure stripped my son's sense of accomplishment.
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giramomma
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Post by giramomma on Mar 15, 2013 14:06:56 GMT -5
In 2nd grade our kids had to do a report on a country, completely written in cursive.
We were also supposed to make a flag and have some pictures in the report.
There wasn't much more direction than that for the project. You could tell which parents chatted about the project, as those kids all came back with projects that looked similar.
We also had to do a book report as a project. Our kid's one one of the few that looked like a 2nd grader did it. Meh. My kid picked a hard book to read, harder than everyone else, of his own choosing. I'm happy enough with that.
Other than that, there isn't the requirement for at home projects. Mostly the teachers want the kids to be reading, doing spelling, and in 2nd/3rd grade, memorizing math facts.
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lynnerself
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Post by lynnerself on Mar 15, 2013 14:48:23 GMT -5
I think our kids got even more projects as TAG (talented and gifted) students, although technically they were optional. Both DD and DS did tooth pick bridges in 5th grade. They had to span 12 inches and be made entirely of white glue and toothpicks. then they were tested for wieght they would support. Both my kids won. DS held more than his own wieght by far. (This is the son that grew up to be an engineer)
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2013 14:52:52 GMT -5
In our school systems our kids were / are constantly doing projects. Thankfully DH is an artist / graphic designer so he's EXTREMELY crafty. I am definitely NOT crafty, but I help in other ways (organization / research / help with writing / editing.)
It's common here to have "projects" in elementary or middle school. Usually the kids would divvy up the research, write it up, print it out, and then assemble it / make the poster here since DH is so great at that.
They usually have at least two a year. DH tends to go overboard but then the kids came to expect it, if that makes any sense.
I think the worst of it was when DH dunked the "scrolls" in tea to "age" them and then burnt the edges off. I can't even remember what that was for.
I think it's just par for the course, alas. But I definitely hate having more "homework". Especially these past few years since I have my own "homework" (ie marking) to do.
The advantage is, IMO, if you help them when they are younger, they basically learn to do it themselves by the time they get to HS. This said, DH has helped the older kids too, but more with layout / style sheets or creating "special" visuals.
ETA: I don't only mean help them make it look nice, although DH does do that. But he refuses to do it FOR them, he teaches them how to do it.
I also mean helping them think about the subject, decide what's important, make an outline, teach them how to research a topic (I forbade my two older boys from doing projects on the internet until they were in HS, obviously that would be impossible now, but at the time it seemed important to me that they learn how to do research in books), how to write in a concise and organized fashion.
I think these are important skills for later.
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Mar 15, 2013 15:03:09 GMT -5
Dude... it's a simple wooden box with a trap door in the top (buy the hinge at a home improvement store) that's all painted green. Decorate the top like a little club house with doll furniture and stuff. Build a simple little ladder out of thin wooden dowels, popsicle sticks, or gathered twigs to lean against the side. Then write "Absolutely NO Leprechauns Allowed" on the sides of the box. Leprechauns are sneaky and don't like following rules, so they'll head up the ladder to check the place out, and when they step on the trap door in the middle they fall in the box. Easy Peasy.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2013 15:18:19 GMT -5
Also, I know I'm jumping at least 10 years forward here, LOL, but having some skills that are "above and beyond" the usual skills (in whatever) is always a good thing.
Just as an example, when my kids wanted their projects to look really good, DH taught them how to use Creative Suite. Having even basic knowledge in that has served my DS1 and DS2 VERY well over the years. Both of them have told us that it definitely gave them "an edge" over other candidates for internships or jobs.
DS3 is doing a big poetry project now. He had to choose a theme. Then he had to find 10 poems on the theme, by 10 US (northeastern) poets, write a short bio for each, and choose accompanying artwork. He has to be prepared to speak on them for his end of MS oral English exam.
He was struggling with the short bios. He was writing three times too much and then cutting it down. It was making me crazy LOL. I told him, which one are you struggling with the most? He said, Maya Angelou, there's just too much info on her LOL. I said I'll do that one for you, and I'll explain how I did it. And I did.
He was amazed. But, he got it! He had three left at that point, and he did them quickly.
I enjoyed this project immensely (although at this point it feels like it's gone on forever) because yes, I majored in English, and did all my optional papers on poetry (yes, that YM favorite LOL). But, I know that the time I have spent with DS3 on this project is time well spent.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Mar 15, 2013 15:19:30 GMT -5
We did the leprechaun trap, but my son had it all worked out in his head. He decided he was going to make it out of an old shoe, and it didn't really have a decent lever or pulley, just an implied one. I let my kids do their own thing if they have a vision. If it is suppose to be more complicated, and they get a "D" in leprechaun traps, then I guess they will never go Harvard. Oh well.
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Colleenz
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Post by Colleenz on Mar 15, 2013 15:23:42 GMT -5
I hate the school projects. I volunteered at the Valentines party and some of the valentines boxes were so elaborate they must have taken weeks. It was also obvious they were made by the parents, not the kids.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2013 15:23:58 GMT -5
We did the leprechaun trap, but my son had it all worked out in his head. He decided he was going to make it out of an old shoe, and it didn't really have a decent lever or pulley, just an implied one. I let my kids do their own thing if they have a vision. If it is suppose to be more complicated, and they get a "D" in leprechaun traps, then I guess they will never go Harvard. Oh well. Or worse, they never catch a Leprechaun.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Mar 15, 2013 15:27:22 GMT -5
I bought a little plastic leprechaun from Michael's and threw it in the trap, and my son got really upset and pulled it out and threw it in the trash. I didn't realize he thought leprechauns were real. He doesn't believe in Santa - so, oops.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2013 15:27:51 GMT -5
This is one of the things I love about sending my kids to a Montessori school. No homework. It goes against their philosophy.
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thyme4change
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Post by thyme4change on Mar 15, 2013 15:30:06 GMT -5
The teachers always send this home and say "This will be fun for the whole family to work on."
Yup, because before I had kids I would think to myself "I just don't build enough Leprechaun traps. That would be really fun!" And we had a bunch of parties where we made dioramas and stuff. Skip going to the bars - we've got a turkey to disguise as a football player!
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Sum Dum Gai
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Post by Sum Dum Gai on Mar 15, 2013 15:31:00 GMT -5
I forgot my biggest gripe with school projects. Teachers who refuse to think outside the box. When my younger one did her mission project she chose to build a full scale model of a mission that you could walk through in Minecraft. Teacher wouldn't let her turn it in as a model though because she didn't have the physical model to bring in. She had to take a series of screen shots and turn it in as a picture project. The models required a couple paragraphs describing the mission. The picture projects required at least one paragraph per picture and at least twenty pictures. She spent hours and hours creating the model, and still got stuck with all the writing.
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Happy prose
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Post by Happy prose on Mar 15, 2013 16:31:13 GMT -5
Swamp..when your kids get a bit bigger, they'll have group projects. They really suck. There's always kids that contribute zero.
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vonna
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Post by vonna on Mar 15, 2013 16:46:25 GMT -5
Swamp..when your kids get a bit bigger, they'll have group projects. They really suck. There's always kids that contribute zero. Yep. The group projects are even worse, unless your kid is lucky enough to match up with others that are willing to work. Sometimes it is close to impossible to find times that they are all available to meet.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Mar 15, 2013 17:11:41 GMT -5
Personally I prefer the group projects. They are usually in groups of 3 or 4, and even if there is ONE slacker, hey, that means two or three are sharing the work.
My four kids are 14-26. Only ONCE did a kid show up having done NOTHING, I mean ZERO (group project for the 14YO when they were 11.) By the end of the session my nerves were totally frazzled, but yeah, the slacker had done his work.
When the mom showed up to pick him up I told her in no uncertain terms I thought it was perfectly normal to help my kids with their homework but I had never realized that participating in a group project meant helping other kids with theirs.
Yeah, I'm a beech LOL.
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