My daughter’s elementary school has a program called Watchdogs, where dads volunteer to spend the day in school with their kids. It was so popular that the first slot I could get was in January. Friday the 13th, to be exact. My twins have been looking forward to this day for months. They would walk around telling people through a toothless smile, “my dad is going to be a watchdog in January.” Well, the day finally came, and boy, was it an experience. A wonderful, exhausting experience.
It was a special day for them. This was their opportunity to share their individual environment with me. Something that was built independently from me. So, I wanted to start the day by showing them a little of the environment I have without them. I took them to the Hilton in Haymarket. I go there in the mornings before work to write, talk, and read. They have a delicious breakfast, so I brought the girls. They were so well behaved ordering their food. They said, may I, please, and thank you. It was nice to see my girl’s manners and communication skills thriving. When the food arrived, my two monkeys gobbled it up. After I finished my coffee, we headed off to their environment.
We arrived at the school, signed in, and received my watchdog instructions. I was to drop the girls off in their classrooms and then come back to greet the kids off the bus. Then back to the classroom, pick up the girls, and then to the computer room for morning announcements. The kids off the bus acted as if they knew me already; swarms of them filled the hall, reaching out their hands and fists for bumps and fives. Within a matter of minutes, the halls were empty, and I was off to grab the girls. We rushed up to the computer lab, where the kids were practicing their announcements. They had a great setup full of a big-screen tv, fancy graphics, and a teleprompter. After the kids were done practicing, they brought the girls and me over with another dad that was volunteering and his girls. The drama teacher walked us through what to do. She said to tell the kids your name, whatever you want them to call you, to give you a high five and fist bump in the hallway, and anything else interesting to add. I said, “ My name is Mr. Mayhugh. If you see me in the hallway, give me a fist bump or a high five. And also, share with me what your favorite book is. I love to read.” After that, the twins shyly introduced themselves. A far cry from when we have the camera on them at home.
Back to the classroom I went. My twins are in two separate kindergarten rooms, and I started my day volunteering in Ellie’s room. Her teacher prepared a craft to do with the children, using dot markers to color in a penguin. She gave me a list of the kids’ names, and I called them one by one into the hallway, where we sat at a tiny little desk and completed the task. With each kid, I introduced myself and explained what they were to do. The first kid I pulled was excited to share his favorite book, Sonic. We sat and chatted about the book while he completed the craft. Kid after kid came out and shared their favorite book. I was surprised at the response to my announcements. I grabbed my notebook and began to note what type of books the kids liked and why. Their choices ranged from modern-day classic readers like Pete the Cat, Snail on a Whale, Spiderman, and Frozen to non-fiction books about penguins and polar bears. Some kids liked the pictures, some the story, and others the lessons.
Friday the 13th also happened to be picture retake day. So I was asked to walk the kids to and from the auxiliary gym for the pictures. There were so many kids having retakes, including both of my girls. They had the flu back in November, as did most of the school, apparently. Before leaving, Ellie’s teacher noticed she had taken out the pigtails her mom put in for the pictures. She took the time to fix them and another little girl’s hair before we headed out. I took the four from Ellie’s class and linked up with another volunteer and the security guard in the hallway. Keeping 40-50 kindergartners and first graders organized and calm in a hallway is not an easy task. The Security guard running the show handled the kids with stern patience and kept the kids in line.
After finishing up, I was back at the craft in Ellie’s class when I noticed kids packing up for lunch. I know Ellie’s class has lunch after Sadie’s, which meant I missed the beginning of Sadie’s lunch. I told the teacher and rushed off to lunch.
A lunchroom at an elementary school is an experience unlike many others. I remember the first time I visited one when Julia was in kindergarten; it took me 5-10 minutes to gather myself so I could focus. There are so many kids and adults talking very loudly at the same time. I was late to Sadie’s lunch, so my past experience was helpful in getting me caught up with her class. By the time I got there, Sadie and her friends had their lunch and sat down. She was smiling ear to ear when I showed up. And the first thing I realized is I forgot to plan my lunch. I see the other dads ordered Chick-fil-a. I wish I had thought of that. Oh well. The kids in the class were excited I was there. They remembered me from the last time I had lunch on the girl’s birthday. They wanted me to read them a book, but I forgot to bring one. Instead, I made up a story with the help of the kids. It was about a raccoon who loved pickles. He went house to house, trash can to trash can, searching for the briny treats. The kids loved it. In a blink, their lunch was over, and I went over to Ellie’s table. I shared the pickle story's beginning with the kids, and we wrote more to finish it.
By this time, it was around noon, and I was exhausted. I went back and helped out in Sadie’s class. I learned how hard it is to get 28 kids to write their names on their papers. I also watched the kids work independently to complete and finish their tasks. Some struggled at points, but the other kids in the class were eager to help.
The rest of the day was spent outside at recess and in the library for encore. While in the library, I helped the librarians put return stickers on a box of books. After that, I found the first adult-size chair I had seen all day and sat down. It was so comfortable I dozed off a little while the librarian read the kids a book. I think it was a combination of exhaustion and stupidity for not eating or drinking anything all day. When we left for the day, the girls asked, “When are you going to do it again?”
The experience I had in the school was wonderful. I like the way the school organized the day. It was well thought out. They allow the parent to get both a behind-the-scenes look and a front-row look at the kid’s day. The variety of communication skills you see in a kindergarten class is remarkable. Kids at that age adapt and grow so fast. I was impressed by the learning environment the teachers and staff have cultivated at the school. I am grateful to have them in my children’s lives.
Having said all that, there is a lot I learned I was not too thrilled about. The biggest problem I see is the teachers and staff are outnumbered. Most classes have 25-30 kids, which is a lot to teach at once, and not all rooms are equipped for that many students. Every child has a computer, but not every child has a proper workspace. This is not ideal. The next biggest problem I see, and I have been watching it for some time with my other kids, is the curriculum is overloaded. The teachers are forced to jam so much in every day. The kids are yo-yo’d back and forth from subject to subject. The kids have no time to be kids; they barely have time to eat. Trays full of food are tossed away because there are only a few minutes to eat by the time you get through the line. If a child takes longer to learn, they get pulled out and sent to a specialty class. The overloaded curriculum moves the focus away from learning and to pass/fail efficiencies. It becomes less about what the kids know and understands and more about what they can remember for their test. But the memories are fleeting, and the learning is lost.
Having spoken with a number of teachers over the past several years, I believe the central problem of our education system is the bureaucracy that controls the decision-making process. The people making the decisions are so far away from the problem they can’t see what they have done and how much money they are wasting. If we want our schools to serve our children, we need to give the parents, teachers, and principals the power to do so.