I mentioned the other day that my 7 year-old Jamie, along with all the 2nd graders in our school, has a school project that’s due this week. It is one of those projects that, truly I am not exaggerating, cannot possibly be done by a 2nd grader. It involves making a doll (that’s right, MAKING a doll–not buying one or drawing one) that celebrates one’s ancestral heritage. In addition to making the doll, each 2nd grader must also prepare a display that celebrates their ancestral heritage. The display may include food, artifacts, souvenirs, memorabilia, anything that illustrates the genetic background of the child.
Ok, give me a break! These kids are 7 for crying out loud! My kid does not even know what an artifact is, much less could he identify one that illustrates his Italian heritage. As for bringing in food, um, he is a little young to operate a stove. So let’s not pretend that the onus is on anyone other than the parents for this one.
Just to be clear, I am not complaining. I spend time reading with and helping my kids with homework every night. Actually I only ever really help Jamie, because he is the only one who asks me for help, because after all HE IS 7 YEARS OLD and therefore a little young to be able to manage on his own.
I understand and actually agree with the idea that sometimes a school project that can be shared with the parents can be fun for both parent and child. But there are limits. Shouldn’t the child be the one doing the thinking and initiating and learning? When the parent is the one running around the house searching for scraps of fabric that can pass for “artifacts,” or running to the grocery store to buy enough hot Italian sausage to cook for approximately seventy five 2nd graders and their parents, maybe it’s time to rethink the school project.
What do you think? Am I just being really cranky? Or have some of these school projects become more about the parents than the kids?
Competition amongst parents is another related topic re: contests/projects/etc….
Where my niece went to preschool & kindergarten (private school), every halloween they would have a pumpkin contest. Except about 95% were done by the parents, as a contest amongst themselves, vs actually letting the kids do them (school was pre-k to 6).
I felt bad for all the kids who actually did it themselves – because however creative they were, they lost to the parents.
Give them kid appropriate projects or contests and let them do it themselves!!
It’s not just you! Just heard of a friend whose elementary-aged child was to make a candy apple for school. The caramel has to be so hot for that! So of course, the mother had to do it. Not as detailed as your child’s project, but still … Crazy!
My 4th grader just completed a Geography project on the Catskills. He had to make a diorama of the landscape using materials as close to the real thing as possible and then write a paragraph on fact about the Catskills. While I did enjoy helping him with this, there was too much parental involvement expected. So when it came down to helping him research and write the paragraph, do you think I guided him to write about the terrain, landscapes, gorges and geography? No way. If my parental invovlvement is so expected, I was going to teach him things that I found important and interesting. I am proud to say my son wrote his Catskills essay on Woodstock. He wrote about Janis Joplin, The Who, The Grateful Dead, Joe Cocker and Jimi Hendrix. That’s what you get when you ask for parental involvement from a mom born in the 60s. Peace Out.
That’s amazing Mamagirl! By the way, Andrew recently had to do a project about an important event of the 60′s, and all the other kids did theirs on the cuban missile crisis or vietnam. I of course got Andrew to write his about Woodstock!!