That’s right, you read correctly.
Last week was Anastasia’s final week of school before Christmas break. Anastasia came home on Monday (last week) and told me she didn’t have any homework. I thought it was odd, although I asked her a few times and she told me she didn’t have any. I asked Tuesday, then Wednesday.
On Wednesday her report card came in, she dropped in almost EVERY subject. Her grades dropped ALOT. At that point I decided I needed to call her teacher on Thursday (Dec 11th).
When I talked to Anastasia’s teacher, she told me that Anastasia talks non stop and that almost none of her school work has been turned in and that is why her grades are so low. I asked her teacher why her grades were so low and she told me it was because Anastasia talks so much, her work doesn’t get done and then she never turns it in.
Then Anastasia’s teacher told me that she had full day (detention) that day because Anastasia lost her homework point card. I told her teacher that Anastasia told me she didn’t have any homework. He teacher told me yes she did and that Anastasia told her that she left her homework at home. Oh boy.
Looks like the lying is in FULL swing again.
When Anastasia got home I told her she was grounded. She was not allowed off the wall (you know the old nose on the wall punishment) unless she had a pass. So now when does anything that takes her off the wall, chores, eating, schoolwork, etc. she needs to have this pass I made for her.
I am trying to get through to her, that not only is lying bad, she needs to remember the rules and follow them even though she is not reminded constantly.
It has been two days into her ‘vacation’ and I hate it when she is punished. The only thing that keeps my staying the course with this punishment is I know it will make her a better person in school and in the future.
Integrity is defined as:
1. Steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code.
2. The state of being unimpaired; soundness.
3. The quality or condition of being whole or undivided; completeness.
Have you taught your child what integrity is?
Anastasia was doing her homework the other day when she asked me what integrity was. I questioned the fact she didn’t know what integrity was. Surely I taught her integrity.
I guess I did not.
I realized in that moment without the knowledge of why she follows a path of good swaying away from bad, she doesn’t know why she is doing it. I have spent the last few days showing her examples and explaining how my integrity teaches me right from wrong and doing wrong on to others.
Here is homework for you: Does your child know what integrity is? Ask them to explain it to you.
I am not a teacher in any stretch of an imagination and I barely know what I am doing half the time. I just thought if this stunned me, it may stun some other parents out there.
This is the best I had all week! Today, my daughter comes home, she forgot her lunch box at school again. Not a big deal, I tell her she is grounded until the lunch box comes home. Which equates to being grounded tonight, then tomorrow if she brings the lunch box home, she is good to go. That’s not my favorite though.
So she is doing her homework, she gets done and brings it up to my desk. We go over it together. The last math problem she has is this:
1,000 meters = 1kilometer
Tom and Isaac walked 2 and 1/2 kilometers along a hiking trail. How many meters did they walk?
Her answer, 2000 and 1/2.
I tried very hard not to fall out of my chair laughing. I corrected her and explained how to figure it out.
Simple moments in time like these is where we can really find joy in being parents.
So my daughter comes home after school, she is happy to be home. It’s crazy humid here in Arizona and about 100 degrees. We are walking home from her bus stop and all she wants to do is play outside. Cool, I understand that. Except I need to go to the store and get milk, we ran out this morning. I am in the middle of work and really need to finish this pressing project. And her room is a mess shoved in side her closet. o.O
Ok, list of priorities:
Homework - if that’s not done she gets automatic detention, not cool.
My Pressing Project - Without the projects I complete and get paid for, there is NO money, obvious second choice since she can do her homework while I finish the project, right? Umm, no.
She decides she doesn’t want to use the brain God gave her and the one I have been trying to grow. She is up at my desk every 2 minutes asking another question about something I taught her last week on her homework.
After a little frustration on both sides, I just stopped the project, decided to devote all my time to her, since that’s really what she wanted. And we finished her homework together laughing all the way.
I’ve learned, without someone else there to help you with all the little things it’s all too easy to get wrapped up in what your doing, even if it’s what puts food on the table. Your child doesn’t understand or care about your work. They just want attention, and since I am a single dad, that means double the amount of attention.
So we ended up finishing her homework, going to the store, then I let her go out and play. I came up to work on that pressing project and decied to share this afternoon’s events here because it may be helpful to someone else.
