Very Upset...what to do...

[pls5286]

My DD is in kindergarten this year and I have purposely stayed out of politics this year. Well evidently her teacher is very pro Obama and has all the kids in the class for Obama. This mornining when DD heard on the news that Obama won she starts jumping up and down and celebrating. I am very upset that the school is doing this to my child...what do I do. I do not discuss the issues around my kids and have my own reasons for staying out of politics. This is the public school in our county. I am just so upset that my 5 y/o is acting on something that is not even discussed in our house. What should I do?

 

[NY Disney fan]

Although I an Obama supporter, I don't blame you for being angry. Wait til she gets to college and she'll have the "crazy professor" who'll cram all kinds of doctrine down her throat. In my opinion, teach your daughter to think for herself from here on out.

 

[akhenaten]

first how do you know the teacher has them all for obama? Just on info from you 5 year old?? as mom to 3 i can tell you that the stories that come home from school are often missing pieces.....

The teacher may have spoken about the election and mentioned both candidates...but other kids may have liked obama....maybe even cause he has a fun name... who knows in Kindergarten

If she jumped up and down this morning..you could have just said... yes honey the USA just elected a President!!
that is something to be happy about right... no matter who won!!!

 

[akhenaten]

Although I an Obama supporter, I don't blame you for being angry. Wait til she gets to college and she'll have the "crazy professor" who'll cram all kinds of doctrine down her throat. In my opinion, teach your daughter to think for herself from here on out.

can't argue with that!

 

[SeaShelley]

What should you do ? Personally, I wouldn't do anything at this point. It will probably just blow over now that the election is done. However, if my child continued to come home with political comments I would probably send an e-mail to the teacher.

 

[OceanAnnie]

first how do you know the teacher has them all for obama? Just on info from you 5 year old?? as mom to 3 i can tell you that the stories that come home from school are often missing pieces.....

The teacher may have spoken about the election and mentioned both candidates...but other kids may have liked obama....maybe even cause he has a fun name... who knows in Kindergarten

If she jumped up and down this morning..you could have just said... yes honey the USA just elected a President!!
that is something to be happy about right... no matter who won!!!

I voted for McCain. My kids participated in a mock election at school and told me they voted for Obama. I asked why and they told me exactly that. He has a cool name. So that could very well be.

 

[All American]

Hmmm...I would be upset too. Because your child is only 5, she probably doesn't really understand elections and things of that nature. I would ask her some questions about why she is excited (was she seeing some of the coverage of people celebrating and mimicking them?) and try to figure out what the teacher has said.

Also, I would start discussing politics at home. My parents always talked about it at the dinner table, and as I grew up I was able to participate with a comment or question. My daughter's only 4, but we had a family night on Monday where we had an election for the family treat that night. I made a voting booth and explained that you go and put the piece of candy you think we should eat in the bowl. We, then, take turns and count the results. Kit Kat won and she was thrilled. Then, when I took her to the polls with me on Tuesday, she understood I was voting, just for a person not food. Your lessons and discussions can be simple ones.

 

[sdarwkcabemanmy]

first how do you know the teacher has them all for obama? Just on info from you 5 year old?? as mom to 3 i can tell you that the stories that come home from school are often missing pieces.....

The teacher may have spoken about the election and mentioned both candidates...but other kids may have liked obama....maybe even cause he has a fun name... who knows in Kindergarten

If she jumped up and down this morning..you could have just said... yes honey the USA just elected a President!!
that is something to be happy about right... no matter who won!!!

I agree..my 4 1/2 year old can point to a picture and say "That's Bark Obama" or "That's John Makkin" (as he says it..his pronounciation of both names are a litle bit off ) but he doesn't know what it means or who they really are, aside from two guys who've been on TV a lot lately.

 

[FinallyBoughtDVC]

You also have to remember that Obama has young children. That is very, very appealing to young kids.

 

[RitaE]

Well there are several topics in life
Sex Education, Religion, Politics -- things like that. I've always been of the opinion that if YOU don't teach your children about them somebody else most certainly will. Either that or they'll learn to let the tv think for them.

I don't understand why you don't discuss politics with your child. I'm not saying that you need to tell your children who the right candidate is, but you can certainly tell them ... this is Candidate A. This is his background and this is what he would like to do if he was elected. ... this is Candidate B ... and then discuss her feelings on the issues.

You chose not to do that, so .... you pretty much chose to leave her uneducated and looking elsewhere for information. I'd rethink that stance if I were you.

 

[freckles and boo]

Obama will likely be the very first president she will remember when she is an adult. You can use this as an opportunity to discuss what a president does without discussing the election process. I wouldn't get bent out of shape about it. The election is over.

 

[Sabrina90744]

My DD is in kindergarten this year and I have purposely stayed out of politics this year. Well evidently her teacher is very pro Obama and has all the kids in the class for Obama. This mornining when DD heard on the news that Obama won she starts jumping up and down and celebrating. I am very upset that the school is doing this to my child...what do I do. I do not discuss the issues around my kids and have my own reasons for staying out of politics. This is the public school in our county. I am just so upset that my 5 y/o is acting on something that is not even discussed in our house. What should I do?

Maybe you could put aside the politics part and embrace the historical meaning. This is something to really celebrate, something I never thought I would see in my lifetime.

 

[clarabelle]

I consider politics private and I don't usually discuss it too much with other people.
I have learned however that I need to discuss it a little with my kids (more so now that they are older) because if I don't someone else will. Mostly other kids saying things that they have heard (sometimes incorrectly) from their parents.

If you know for sure that the teacher was discussing politics -I would mention it to her. Find out both sides of the story.

 

[lisah0711]

And it is only the beginning of the thousands of times in her life that your daughter's opinions will not be same as your own!

 

[Chicago526]

It could also be that the kids in your child's class could be for Obama because their parents are, not because the teacher is.

If you're really that concerned about it, talk to the teacher about it (calmly!). Just ask her what, if anything, she's said to the kids about the election and/or the candidates, and then decide for yourself if she was out of line.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

That has to hurt. I know I would not be happy if the shoe was on the other foot.

However, I would take what she said with a grain of salt, realize she is in K and this is a historical election.

Probably putting it into perspective is a good path to take right now.

Now if she is coming home through the year with comments, then I would address it with the teacher. Have a private conference.

 

[disney_family_1247]

When I was a teacher, I worked really hard not to show bias when we talked about things like politics. On the other hand, I never lied if the kids asked me who I supported because I don't think that children should be taught that they have to hide their choices. Kindergarten is young, but most schools have mock elections and discuss politics. It's probably a disservice to intentionally not educate a child on such an important topic. No five year old I know is totally unaware that something big was going on. Many of us want our children to grow up proud of their country and their rights in this country. Our kids were very excited to go and vote with us. We live in an area where almost no one shares our values and political views. I have always wanted them to know that we are not just like everyone else, and that it's okay to be different.

I have to point out that because everyone here has very different views than us, it influenced us on our choices about education. We homeschool and not for religious reasons.

 

[bamajill]

Well there are several topics in life
Sex Education, Religion, Politics -- things like that. I've always been of the opinion that if YOU don't teach your children about them somebody else most certainly will. Either that or they'll learn to let the tv think for them.

I don't understand why you don't discuss politics with your child. I'm not saying that you need to tell your children who the right candidate is, but you can certainly tell them ... this is Candidate A. This is his background and this is what he would like to do if he was elected. ... this is Candidate B ... and then discuss her feelings on the issues.

You chose not to do that, so .... you pretty much chose to leave her uneducated and looking elsewhere for information. I'd rethink that stance if I were you.

I agree. I don't understand the unwillingness to talk to kids about any subject, to be honest. Just keep it on their level--it doesn't have to be deep & policy riddled.

And I also agree there is a HUGE chance the teacher had very little to do w/your child's reaction. Possible, but there are many other possibilities as well (such as her friends opinions, the name thing, the Obama kids, etc.). Why not ask her why she likes him???

My daughter (2nd grade) was one of only 2 in her class of 17 who 'voted' for Obama. Her friends tried to get her to change her mind (b/c Obama doesn't believe in God ) but she told them she was 'capable of making up her own mind'....lmao....

 

[singingpixie]

I agree. I don't understand the unwillingness to talk to kids about any subject, to be honest. Just keep it on their level--it doesn't have to be deep & policy riddled.

And I also agree there is a HUGE chance the teacher had very little to do w/your child's reaction. Possible, but there are many other possibilities as well (such as her friends opinions, the name thing, the Obama kids, etc.). Why not ask her why she likes him???

My daughter (2nd grade) was one of only 2 in her class of 17 who 'voted' for Obama. Her friends tried to get her to change her mind (b/c Obama doesn't believe in God ) but she told them she was 'capable of making up her own mind'....lmao....

That is adorable!

 

[Tink&SquirtsMom]

My DD is in kindergarten this year and I have purposely stayed out of politics this year. Well evidently her teacher is very pro Obama and has all the kids in the class for Obama. This mornining when DD heard on the news that Obama won she starts jumping up and down and celebrating. I am very upset that the school is doing this to my child...what do I do. I do not discuss the issues around my kids and have my own reasons for staying out of politics. This is the public school in our county. I am just so upset that my 5 y/o is acting on something that is not even discussed in our house. What should I do?

Are you sure the teacher is for Obama? In my son's K class they had a mock election. My son was stoked Obama won because it meant blue won and he had voted for Obama because his color was shown in blue which his favorite color. On the way home from school yesterday when I picked up the K carpool they had a very heated debate over McCain v. Obama because McCain liked taco's and Obama perferred chili as his favorite food. The girl who also liked tacos was adamant for McCain.