Before I start my mini rant, I just wanted to wish all who read here a Happy New Year. I"m not one to make resolutions, as then I don't have to worry about keeping them, so there won't be the standard, "Here are my resolutions, now watch me fail Post" Anyways, Christmas was fabulous in our crazy clan, and I have even more things to eat up my time, read Kindle Fire. I didn't accomplish all that I had planned to do over break, but we had tons of fun, and enjoyed the sun and the 48 degrees. So now that we are all up to speed, I will head back to my regularly scheduled programing :)
Martin Luther King Day is a week and a half away. In normal areas, kids would learn a lesson or two about Dr. King and then enjoy a day off in remembrance of his birthday. Of course, I live in a far from normal area, and our local schools will do next to nothing to remember the contributions of Dr. King. Our kids have school that day, even though at the end of the month, a day off is scheduled for a State Speech Meet. When the kids go to school on the 16th, they won't have any fun, educational assemblies where they will learn about the stand that Martin Luther King Jr took.
Yes, that seems strange and wrong to me, and the reason that its done this way is because we are on the reservation. All the other schools in our state take the date off. Last year, when I worked at Peterson's school, I traveled with the classes for a "MLK" celebration at the tribal college. It was appalling. Nothing was mentioned about the life of Dr. King. Instead, we watched a Pow Wow. Now, don't get me wrong, I appreciate the value of learning about tribal history and customs, I just don't think that the timing was appropriate. I actually complained about it last year, but I got the brush off.
This year I decided that I'm keeping my kids home on the 16th. I believe its very important for all my children to learn about the struggle for civil rights and equality. I wish the schools would take part, as Dr. King's message promoted equality for all people, and I think its important for everyone to learn, but since they won't, I will and my kids will know.
Of course, I'm not going to let my kids just stay at home and watch SpongeBob. I am planning all kinds of fun learning activities for that day. I went to our local, well stocked library(note that the sarcasm font should be used here). I found both books in the children's'section that pertained to civil rights and the struggle for equality. I think we are going to have a birthday party for Dr. King and talk about what his life stood for. I plan on heading over to my favorite stomping ground, Pinterest, to look for some more fun ideas. If you have any ideas on lessons/crafts/ect, feel free to share.
2 comments:
I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE that you are doing this! Seriously. I agree that the school should at the very least recognize and plan lessons about Dr. King but since they are not then way to take the responsibility.
What will you say when you call in for them? I already know that you won't say they are "sick" :-)
You know I support your decision to do this. It is the RIGHT thing to do. Anyway, I think you should tell the school directly that you are keeping them home to observe a National Holiday and to educate the kids and to honor a remarkable man. It's so likely that without is influence, none of us could have even dreamed about adopting our kids across racial lines.
Post a Comment