Does the Government Dislike Families with Homeschooled Kids?

Recently on May 5th, Kentucky government raided a family’s home, arrested the father, and took away the ten children in the family. This was simply because the government disagreed with the family’s lifestyle and educational decisions, because all ten children in the family are home schooled. On that Wednesday of May 5th, police entered the home, and even blocked the road leading to the home. The mom of the family, Nicole, was home with her two oldest sons. The police immediately took the children, and Nicole was then arrested for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Later, the father of the family, Joe, was forced to give up the other eight children or be arrested for felony charges. The  police’s main argument in this situation is that the children were not being treated properly, but the neighbors say they always see everyone having a good time.

Police Seize 10 Children From Off-Grid Family Because They’re Homeschooled

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In my opinion, this is both horrible and ridiculous. Parents should be allowed to make their own decisions on their children’s education. Police coming and taking that away is wrong in every possible way. Just because this one family’s life is a little bit different, doesn’t mean that they should be punished for it. The police even say that the children were living in bad conditions, and their needs weren’t being met, yet Joe and Nicole post weekly pictures on Facebook showcasing their kids. The kids look completely healthy, and their house looks like any other. The family’s neighbors also observe them often, and say that there is nothing wrong with them at all, and they are one-hundred percent happy. Yet, police are still trespassing into the family’s house, and also stealing loved ones. This makes me wonder: is the government out to get homeschooled kids?

~Connor

I’m Not Pro-Crastinating

We all have those things that we don’t want to do, and sometimes we avoid until we can’t. Even then, some of us go that extra mile and keep procrastinating. We’ve all heard it before and we’ve all done it, some more than others. When you procrastinate, you know you have something to do and you have plenty of time to do it. But somehow, every free moment you have seems like a perfect time to do something else! How will I find the time to write that essay when it’s so nice outside and all I want to do is go for a run, sit outside, walk the dog- speaking of the dog, I think I forgot to feed her. I’ll go look. Okay she has food, but I have no apples left! Man, I really want an apple. I guess I’ll add that to my grocery list. Hey look, there’s no more room on the page! I guess I’ll have to go to the store. Okay I’m back, but guess who I saw at the store. My 5th grade teacher! I wonder where my old yearbook is. I’ll go look. Well I couldn’t find the yearbook, but I found my old essay from 6th grade! Hey speaking of essay, I still have to write that. But look, it’s 7:50! My favorite TV show is on in 10 minutes! I guess I’ll write it after. Wow, that was a great episode. I think I’ll go take a shower. What? 10:00 already? I should probably get to sleep because I have to get up early tomorrow. And write that essay.

You see, procrastinators are perfectly aware of the task at hand, and have the time to do it. But when they have a week to do that project, why start now? Pretty soon, one week turns into one day, which turns into one night, which flies by until you finish with an hour to spare. Some very simple reasons that people procrastinate is because they seem too hard, too time-consuming, you don’t think you know what you’re doing, and you’re scared of failure. Who wants to write some big long hard essay when you could simply watch a movie? And who wants to spend hours preparing a speech when you can go out to dinner? And no one wants to try and do a presentation on something they know nothing about, and that can play into the fear factor too. Everyone’s going to know if you mess up, so let’s do this a little later. These are good reasons for procrastinating, and it’s not really hurting anyone, is it? They might seem like good reasons, but they actually aren’t. If the assignment is so hard, then you should do it now while you can get help from a teacher and ask questions. Something tells me they won’t be as helpful the night before it’s due. Too time-consuming? Maybe if you do it all in one sitting it is, but if you chunk it out in the time you have, it’ll be a piece of cake. If you don’t know what you’re doing, then you have the time to learn what you should, even if you just haven’t been paying attention in class. As for failure, things done in three hours are going to be a lot more sloppy than something done in three days, or more. If you put more time and effort into it, there’s a higher chance for success.

As for me personally, I’m an avid procrastinator. I think it’s fun to see how long it’ll actually take, especially when the teacher says “this isn’t a project you can do in one night”. Now this of course is a horrible mindset, but it’s a hard one to shake. If you haven’t started or aren’t in too deep, I would, without a doubt, advise you to stop procrastinating and never do it again. I think it’s addictive and not good, but I just can’t stop doing it. It’s usually more with projects, and I underestimate the amount of work and time I need to put into it. Of course, this is nothing that can’t be solved by a few hours of hard, frantic work. So even though procrastination is a horrible habit, I’d say that I’m pretty good at it.

~Michelle

Who(LU) Wants To Binge Watch?

Everyone has a favorite television show, and sometimes we sit down, turn on Netflix, and watch a few episodes. Or seasons. Or the entire series. This is called binge watching. We all do it without a second thought. There’s no harm in watching excessive amounts of television, right? Wrong. Have you ever heard of binge drinking, or binge eating? These are often linked to depression and loneliness. Is binge watching really that different? The answer is no. Binge watching is a way to escape the sometimes stressful world around you and sink into the action-packed drama-filled happy world of television. Also, when you’re sitting on the couch binge watching, probably with a snack, do you know what you aren’t doing? Getting that 60 minutes of exercise. Actually, you could be done with that after watching about 2 episodes of your favorite show. In addition, 75% of viewers admitted to binge watching, usually using Netflix or Hulu. However, we shouldn’t single them out. There are so many other places to find your favorite shows, so it’s difficult NOT to go watch them. Let’s look at Netflix for a minute. On there, the next episode of the show automatically starts playing when the previous one ends. Do you feel like skipping around? No problem, just click on the list of episodes that are available while you watch and decide what you’re watching next, while you’re watching. How much easier could it get?

 

 

 

Now, do I think that binge watching is all that bad? Honestly, there are worse things to do. Now, I’m not saying that you should go home and watch 10 hours of television, because you have homework to do. I have to admit that I fall into that 75% of binge watchers. After a long week of school, who wouldn’t want to get under the blankets and watch a little (lot of) TV? But, if you are a frequent binge watcher, and you can’t go a day without watching at least 3 hours, then maybe you should find another hobby. As long as you’re getting enough sleep and exercise, as well as keeping your grades up, then you’re good to go. Oh, and don’t forget about clubs. And sports. And food. And your friends. Now the only issue is finding the time to binge watch.

~Michelle

Should Schools Stop Assigning Homework?

Of course students would say yes to no homework, but that’s because when they think of homework, they think of time consuming school work that they have to do at home when they can be doing other things. Every day students go home with 2-3 hours of homework and not everyone is able to get it done. This is because of how time-consuming it is. Even when they do have enough time to do it they spend way more time than they needed to. Schools in the U.S have decided to completely ban homework or have a no homework policy because homework itself takes up so much time and also immensely stressful. Most teens have to deal with the pressure of having good grades and making sure all of their homework is done before they can do other things. It’s the main reason why students have stress, so they have to stay up late and lose a lot of sleep just to finish it.

I like the idea of no homework so I do agree with the no homework policies schools are trying, but sometimes it would be better to have a few examples to practice with if I’m not understanding something. I mostly disagree with the overload of homework that we usually get daily. I would rather not understand something and ask my teacher about it the next day, than stress over getting the work done when I’m most likely doing it completely wrong. Most students participate in school sports and because the practices take up a lot of after school time this means that they can’t get all of their homework done. Even extracurriculars take up most of our time. As you can see, homework has become quite a problem for many reasons and will continue to be until a better solution is found.

~Aleysia

Should Cheshire High School Have a Gymnastics Team?

  Gymnastics is a sport that many people are involved in or want to be involved in. That is why many towns have a high school gymnastics team for girls to participate in. High school gymnastics teams are a good idea because it offers another opportunity for girls in high school to get involved. High school gymnastics teams have a couple practices after school each week and several gymnastics meets on weekends as well as week days. However the gymnastics practices do not interfere with academics. Anyone is allowed to come and cheer on the high school gymnasts at their meets and show their school spirit. These are only a few of the many benefits that come with having a high school gymnastics team.

You do have to have a few specific skills to make the team as you would for any other school sport. However the required skills are rather simple so it’s not too hard for most gymnasts to make the team. Girls on high school gymnastics teams enjoy it because they get to be with their friends, they learn how to work as a team, and high school gymnastics is more about getting into it and trying your hardest rather than winning. This helps because there is not as much pressure as there would be when you are on a normal competitive gymnastics team. It is also convenient for parents because the practices are right after school so they don’t have to leave work early to bring they daughter to practice and it is also free. Some girls don’t have the chance to do gymnastics because it can be very costly and their parents might not be able to drive them. I think Cheshire High School should have a gymnastics team because it teaches girls to work as a team, it’s convenient for students and parents, and it gives girls another opportunity to get involved.

~Gabby

Watch me cry from the inside

Bullies

Hitting, teasing, threats, rumors, gossip, punching, stealing, and calling names are all examples of bullying. Bullying happens everyday, whether you know it or not, someone somewhere is being hurt. Whether it’s verbal, physical, or cyber bullying, it still hurts. If you call people names it has a huge impact on their mental, physical, and emotional health. Bullying can take place in crowds, or somewhere not in public. For example it can happen in school (around nobody) or even in an alley. Also, a target of a bully could be bullied by one or more kids at a time. In fact, schools worldwide are trying to prevent bullying from happening by taking action. I bet someone came to your school to talk to you about bullying, and to tell you about the bad effects from it. Now I’ll tell you honestly, about the way I feel about bullying.

Being a target of bullying stinks! So, when and if you see someone being picked on, and you do nothing about it, you are a bystander. You have just let the person down, even if you tell yourself you have done nothing to harm them. However you have walked away on the situation at hand. But really think about it, why would anyone stand there and watch someone be hurt? Is it popularity or the thought of it happening to yourself?

~Samantha

Should cell phones be allowed in school?

Do you think students should bring their cell phones to school? Many will either say yes or no. You would probably infer that teachers will say yes, but you never know. Now with the improved technology, and upgrade in cell phones, many people are bringing cell phones with them everywhere. Even in a school environment. Many students bring cell phones to distract themselves in class, call parents, or just to have them. Its been said that a student with a cell phone in class, is a student that is uninterested, has a short attention span, and doesn’t like to listen in class. This could lead to students failing in classes because of the distraction of the cell phone. Its not just cell phones, it can be tablets, laptops, or any other type of electronic that they bring to class.

I think that cell phones should not be banned in school. But, when bringing a cell phone, you should always turn it off during classes or have a teachers permission to use it for any class project or class work. Would you really need to text someone or make a call to someone during school hours? I don’t think so. But, bringing a cell phone to school/class can tempt a person to not go by the rules and go on an app that is not related to class. One purpose of bringing a cell phone to school would be to call parents of any emergency or transportation changes. People can argue against this and say that students could just go to the office and call their parents. But, why go to the office when you have your cell phone in reach? Now in this generation, cell phones are basically status symbols. This means that, when going on social media sites and stating that you’re currently in school and online, can make you look “cool” or rebellious. In conclusion, if teachers give students the rules and regulations of bringing cell phones to school, then it wouldn’t be a problem to bring them. For example, you can turn off your phone during class, put it on silent/vibrate, and/or you can just not bring it at all.

~Paula

“Netbooks, iPads, cell phones, iPods, e-readers and even PDAs are increasingly becoming the tools of choice for today’s educators, and it is easy to see why”(Wylie). Today, many students are using electronic devices in the classroom for multiple purposes. Some schools now have the new bring your own device policy or BYOD. Students use their devices to work on projects during class, write essays, look up research using the Internet, and many more ways. These devices allow the classroom to work more efficiently and to work much faster than doing only book work. Thanks to IPads, IPods, IPhones, Nooks, Kindles and lots of other devices homework is a lot faster for today’s 21 century students. Although the use of these devices greatly benefits students, there can be some negative effects as well. One complaint of the BYOD system is that students take advantage over the wonderful opportunity given to them. For example some students text instead of working, others take photos of students during class, and some students work on other class homework during a separate class. No matter the temptations and distractions these devices bring upon students, electronic devices couldn’t be more helpful in the classrooms.

Electronic devices are extremely beneficial thanks to educational apps in the classroom. I believe that many apps make classroom work a breeze for students and it helps the teachers as well. Teachers can put up an assignment during class and students can start the assignment right away on their devices. Also, the use of electronic devices greatly benefits the community as well. This is because as a country we can and are saving ALOT more paper thanks to sharing documents and posting assignments on websites for the students to check at any time. Yes, students are often tempted to do other work and get off task when given time to work on their devices, but I believe students can be trusted. Students today may be more lazy compared to years in the past, but there still is motivation in the classroom especially if teachers promote it even more. I still wonder if there are more ways to make the classroom even easier and faster and even more efficient. For example, I wonder if years from now we will be using other devices in the classroom than the phones, e-readers, iPods and others that we use today. Thanks to these devices the country can stay efficient in the classroom and we can dream and have hope about the future with even more electronical advancements that are yet to come.

~Camryn Formica

Caffeine for Teens: Good or Bad?

Even I have found myself guilty of having a cup of coffee in the morning after a lousy night’s sleep. That extra boost to keep me awake during school is always wonderful, if not necessarily good for my health. No matter how you look at it, caffeine is a drug and the more you have, the more you want. It’s addictive, and I don’t use that term lightly. It literally affects your brain and makes you want more. I suppose Even I have found myself victim to having a cup every morning. It’s good, but that is exactly why I convinced my family to switch to decaf.

It’s not all about coffee, though. Between 5 Hour Energy, Monsters, soda, and even chocolate, caffeine is everywhere. Sure, in low levels, like those in chocolate, caffeine can be helpful and some doctors argue that the occasional caffeine can be good for your health. However, once you push up the dose to something like 5 Hour Energy or Monsters, it can get dangerous. People have died from having just one Monster, so when you think about the fact that some Dodd students have that or more, it’s kind of scary; which is just another reason I don’t plan on ever having one. Care to know more? There are tons of sites, such as this one,  out there that give you information, and they aren’t even hard to find.

I’m sure that I’m not the only one who enjoys coffees and teas on a cold winter morning before school, but trust me, decaf isn’t all that different. It’s the same taste and flavor that you love, but a heck of a lot healthier and not at all addicting. Personally, I don’t even think about how the amount of caffeine in it is significantly less (nothing caffeine free is legitimately caffeine free, it just has a lot less than normal) I just think about the taste. As for keeping you up? I find that it doesn’t really make a difference, I still feel as awake as I did on normal coffee.

 ~Courtney Gavitt

Homework, on Homework, on Homework

Teachers all around Dodd Middle School are questioning the idea of giving more homework to their students. Personally, I already think they are giving enough homework and sometimes too much. I do not think that any student should be staying up late to finish all their homework, but it happens a lot. Not only are kids staying up too late due to their homework, their lives are becoming more stressful. More homework should not become an option.

The amount of homework given in middle schools are making kids more stressed than ever before. With keeping up with schoolwork, friends, sports, and family, homework makes everything harder. For the kids who play sports, their life consists of going to school, going to practice, and then doing homework. This leaves no time for friends and family. For example on Thursday’s I go to school, and then have basketball practice right after until 5:00 p.m. Once I get home from that, I have to eat and then do homework for an hour. Since I play on two teams, I have to go to another basketball practice and I get home at around 9:45. Usually I would be in bed by then, but I have to complete all the rest of my homework. If teachers didn’t give all this homework, my life, and many other teenagers, would be very less stressful and just give us time to be kids.

~Allison Leonetti