Today was Evangeline's pre-k graduation!

[conuly]

I brought a book, as usual.

Now, you have to know something before the following little rant makes sense: I don't say the Pledge of Allegiance. I haven't said it since the 6th grade, and I don't intend to start up again now. I sit respectfully and wait - same as I would if I were visiting and somebody at the table had to pray before eating dinner, I'd wait patiently until they were done. This is the appropriate way to act if you're not participating in displays of this sort.

This puts me lightyears ahead of the people who stood, put their right hand over their heart, and then used their left hand to snap pictures with their cameraphones. WTF? That is not behaving respectfully. That is not appropriate behavior!

(I'm sure in the past I've said quite a bit about my feelings on the Pledge and teaching it to small children, but I can post it all again later if you're interested.)

So, you know, I was a bit shocked. It's rare that, during these events, I have no worry at all about having to have an impromptu discussion on the value of exercising your First Amendment rights! If it had happened this time, I could've smugly pointed to all those other people for a change!

During the graduation, the students sang four songs... the first of which had to do with God. *sighs* Staten Island is just like that sometimes, but all the same we DID talk to the teacher and Jenn DOES intend to follow up with a formal note to the principal.

Now, the teacher assured us that they changed the words for the children to sing, which is great... but as they were playing the song on a CD at the same time that means the children (and the guests!) had to hear the original lyrics as well. This is no doubt confusing for two groups of children. First, of course, it's just inappropriate in a public school because teachers should not be talking about God at all. Children *believe* their teachers, and if their teachers say things to imply that there are or aren't gods, that's not what public school teachers are for. Secondly, by changing the lyrics (but the children were still able to hear the original lyrics), they managed to imply to religious children that there's something shameful about believing in God. That's not right either! I don't want, as an atheist, for public schools to cultivate a belief in deities... but I also don't want them to make religious children feel like they have to keep their beliefs secret.

Now, as the teachers said, it's a catchy song. And it *is*. It's a very catchy song. Other than the inappropriate context, I liked it a lot. I'm humming it now in my head. Very catchy. That doesn't help. Not only does it not excuse the poor choice, but it only makes it worse. Both sets of lyrics are now stuck in the kids' heads, precisely because it *is* such a catchy melody.

So that was that. The rest of the graduation was very nice, and I enjoyed my book. We were going to take Evangeline home, as she was the last student in the class who DIDN'T go home (and I at least felt it's silly to force the teachers to stay all day when they only have one kid left), but the other pre-k teacher had only two kids and she agreed to take Evangeline in her classroom to watch a movie for the afternoon, so that was that.

I also took the time to point out to the pre-k teacher that, end of the year though it is, they should look into what juices they're buying, as some of them may have lead in them. Eep!

Comments

[diatryma.livejournal.com]

It turns out I have Opinions on children and music. It bugs me when kids sing along to CDs, even CDs with only the instruments and backup voices. It bugs me when kindergarten teachers sing badly-- if I can't tell that your "Days of the Week" song is the Addams Family theme until two clicks in, you might want to make it something nonmusical instead. A lot of this is that things were different for me when I was in school, and of course the way my teachers did it was best forever and ever, but there is some defensible miffedness there.

[conuly]

I don't mind teachers singing badly (unless they're really VERY bad), but I don't like them singing to CDs either. Real accompaniment or a cappella, please.

[feebeeglee.livejournal.com]

As a Catholic parent, I would be irked by God songs too.

[conuly]

There's a time and a place for that sort of thing, and that time and place is "church" or possibly "family time".

[diatryma.livejournal.com]

If someone who knows the song in that context doesn't recognize it until the rhythm kicks in, it counts as really very bad. I don't care about tone or diction or anything, just that the kids have something they can follow.