Feeling Philosophical - Not Bike Related

[Trek420]

V, first off, you are a good teacher.

My Mom taught 1st grade also kindergarten and retired as a reading therapist for our Northern CA school dist. She talks about the kids that had problems and how meeting with the parents, even visiting at home if they could not get in and then she understood.

Every so often still at 80+ she is out shopping or walking and someone recognises her "you were my kindergarten teacher!".

You make a difference, V. Even if it's not today this kid will look back and remember he had a teacher who believed in him.

I was one of those "bright but not being challenged enough" kids, bored with school, floundering. Then I had a series of great art teachers; Mr. Turner, Lloyd Wasmuth, Mr Weiss who saw that I had talent and chalenged me. I had it good at home, educated, encouraging, bright, involved parents who value education above all else, good choice of family on my part ;-) Still it was these teachers who showed me "look, you can do creative stuff in school and then in life" and things clicked for me.

So then I knuckled down, went to college, quit college when my folks stopped funding when I came out, went back to school on my own working my way through Private Art School at CCAC, and now my talents are wasted at the phone co. but that's another thread.

Is there anything this kid likes? sports, accordians, spiders...you might not be able to make the long term goal connection because at that age kids don't see that far ahead and lard knows he's not getting this at home. But one of the things I know my Mom did in reading therapy was just talk to the kids, what do they like and then take them to the library and look, here's books on accordians. For many seeing that learning was a way to get to the things they love and that there are books about the stuff was enough. Bet this kid has no books at home.

Besides how many parents want to say "stay in school or you'll wind up like me". Many subtley or not so subtls send the message "dropping out was enough for me."

but could he see that school is where he could learn about the things he loves? I don't envy you, summer's almost here and there's not much time.

PS: the day dreaming and innatention, does he get enough to eat? A.D.D.?