Julie's Journal

If you’ve been a reader of my blog for any length of time, you surely know about my dismay with the Clark County School District. That means that you also know that I’m not one of those parents that think my kid is perfect, and it’s all the schools fault. My kids are bored at school, and when they get bored they stop caring/trying. That’s not the best trait, and we have tried many different approaches to deal with that. I’ve talked to their teachers, counselors, administration, and other parents to no avail. I got no answers, and no help.

It took a friend that I talk to online to point me in the right direction. She found an alternative to the Clark County traditional school called Independent Study. I made a phone call, got an appointment, and soon after my youngest son Justin was enrolled. He didn’t take off as quickly as I would have hoped, but he soon got a schedule down and has done really well. His older brother J.R. soon followed lead, and signed up as well.

Both of them, are a grade level above their peers, and are thriving academically. They do their credit classes Math/English/Science, but they also have the free time to explore other interest like music, art, and finance. Three subjects that are not available in our school district. *Sigh* I have seen the most incredible growth in both of them, and I am very proud. There have been times when I questioned this approach, as it didn’t feel “normal” to what society tells us about education, but I stuck with it because they were accelerating.

But every doubt I had was solidified this week by the latest news report about our school district. Semester exams were held in January, and 91% of the high school students in the whole school district (17,586) failed the Algebra 1 test. FAILED! Yes…didn’t pass. 91% !!!! 87% FAILED Geometry, and 88% FAILED Algebra 2.

Who’s to blame? I live in a city whose annual gambling revenue is in the billions of dollars every year, and the teachers earn $35K a year.

All I can do is stand up for my kids and demand accountability…or take them out of the “system” and let them thrive.

What would you do?

Source: 91% + 87% + 88% = FAILED plus sample questions of the exam.

[tags]Clark County School District, math, high school math, junior high math, test scores[/tags]

My son Justin has been buying blank skateboard decks (100% Canadian Maple) from a retailer on eBay. When he gets them he is drawing custom designs on them and selling them to his friends. I promised him I would blog about his little business adventure and help him get some exposure. We’re currently working on his website, but in the meantime if you are interested in a custom skateboard deck, just let me know.

Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Oh and he autographs the custom skateboard decks as well! If he becomes famous someday, just think! You will own one of his “original” pieces, and it might be worth a lot of money!

[tags]custom skateboard decks, skateboarding, skating[/tags]

I guess my Husbands Vest Hot or Not poll is closed, because I screwed up and closed it, and now I can’t seem to open it back up. Hey, it was my first blog poll, give a girl a break will ya? Thanks for all the comments, they seriously cracked us both up.

So it’s official…the vest is hot, although most agreed it would look better camping/hiking/fishing and not programming. Although he could wear his PJ’s to work and no one would bat an eye.

[poll=2]

Oh and for the record…Michael is a great sport for letting me do this…..give him a round of applause! [twitter @Nothus]

[tags]fishing, camping, hiking, runway fashion, vest[/tags]

I love my husband to death, but you won’t be seeing him on the cover of any men’s fashion magazines anytime soon. He’s a shorts and t-shirt kind of guy, and that’s been fine with me. When we go camping or hiking though, he likes to wear this vest. It’s got a gazillion pockets in it, and it holds all his crap…eh..necessities.

Recently he’s been wearing it to work, and I am just so embarrassed for him. LOL!

Him – “I look sexy in it.”

Me – “Uh…no honey, you look like a dork. No wait!!!! You look like a Boy Scout. Do you need me to sew on your patches for you?”

So to settle our argument, we’re bringing the issue to the public. We need your vote people!

[poll=2]

[tags]fishing, camping, hiking, runway fashion, vest[/tags]

J.R. had me color his hair black the other day. It came out really good. His blue eyes just pop out now. I had some color left over so I decided to add some black minking to my red. I did it myself, so it didn’t come out all that great, but there is a little subtle blackness to it. I think I want to get more color and have Michael do it over.

Actually in this picture you can’t even see the black that well. It does look kinda cool though in person. You’re just going to have to trust me. LOL!

[tags]hair color, minking[/tags]