Last week I attended a meeting sponsored by the NYS Alliance for Public Education. The forum discussed current controversies and issues in public education including the Common Core Learning Standards, teacher evaluations, Governor Cuomo's 2015 Education Budget and the NYS assessments given to elementary students in grades 3-8. My interest in attending the meeting was … Continue reading Testing boundaries
Take a walk on the child side
Last evening, after finally coming to terms with the fact that I wasn't going to take a run, I decided to take a walk instead with Jeter. I made my usual offer to the boys to see if they cared to join me but was met by their usual response - no, thanks. I got … Continue reading Take a walk on the child side
Are you ready to take a ride? Read The Girl on the Train!
I’m a little off my pace this year in terms of how many books I’ve read – I’ve only got 14 titles on my list so far for 2015. Along the way, there were a couple that I slogged through and there was even one that I abandoned as unreadable (Chuck Pahulniak’s Damned). The Girl … Continue reading Are you ready to take a ride? Read The Girl on the Train!
New St. Patrick’s Day parade rules
I couldn't be happier about the new rules announced this morning regarding Albany's St. Patrick's Day parade. In years past this event has been an absolute sh*t show and I haven't felt comfortable taking my kids there in many years. If you know me, you know I'm all about having fun and a couple of … Continue reading New St. Patrick’s Day parade rules
Feeling testy about NYS assessments
How much do you know the mandated state exams administered to elementary school students in New York State? What do you know about these tests and their significance? Have you heard about Assemblymember Jim Tedisco's bill proposal to allow parents to "opt out" of the required tests? If these three questions were on a test … Continue reading Feeling testy about NYS assessments
Advantage – taken or given?
Eleanor Roosevelt once said that "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." Do you think we can apply this logic in a broader sense to situations in which we feel advantage has been taken of us? Do we somehow give permission to people to take advantage of us? There are particular incidents … Continue reading Advantage – taken or given?
Shoulder season
If you're an outdoors exerciser, you'll probably agree that we've arrived at shoulder season - or, as I like to call it, ass season. As in, falling on your ass if you're not cautious because it's so damn icy. We're somewhere between skiing and running/cycling season and each day brings the question of which activity … Continue reading Shoulder season
DelSo 