I don't often rant and rave and gripe and all...but if I don't get it out of my system, I'll end up doing something that might I might regret later on. Well, probably wouldn't regret it, but still I really need to vent!
I'll tell everyone now, if I insult anyone, you/your family/friends...All, have my deepest and most heartfelt apologies. Nothing I say is meant as an insult or slam to anyone. That being said, here we go.
For those of you who don't know, I have a daughter, common knowledge. She started 7th grade this past Wed. As per normal, they sent home this packet for her information that has to be filled out and returned. Every year they do it, it's normal, expected...But it keeps getting a thicker packet each year. And redundant information. I swear, within the first 3 pages, I had filled out the same information 4-5 times. On ONE page, I filled out name, address, social, phone #, THREE times! On the same page! It's stupid. But I know it's for her protection and all, so they don't somehow get her mixed up with everyone else in our little school. It used to take me about 20-30 minutes to fill everything out, now...Now I break it up into 2 sometimes 3 sessions depending on how tired my hand is of writing.
I did fine in it, going along just perfectly.. Came to the page where her medical history is..Got halfway down it, found a new addition. "What language is best to communicate to your child in?". I paused for a minute, sat there thinking...Umm DUH, English. But filled it out, mumbling some, but it thought nothing else of it. 2 pages from there, pulled out this form titled "Language Survey". I debated on putting it back on the bottom and dealing with it later, decided I was curious to what it is. Foolish of me. Pulled it free of the stack and filled out the required Name, School, Grade, Homeroom teacher.. Then read on down. I had a whole page...a page of questions asking me what language was her first language, what we spoke at home, what is her primary language.. It went on and on...a page of it. By the time I got to the bottom, there was one last question.. "What language do you prefer us to speak if/when we need to contact you?" There are no checkboxes on this, just blanks for the answers to be written in. By this time I was tired of paperwork and slightly pissed that they were asking these kind of questions. So in my blank spot, it reads, "I live in the USA, what language do you THINK I speak??" I mean, come on.. She's been in this same school since kindergarten, so K thru 7 so far and they are just now asking me what language I speak. I think that they deserved that one.
She takes everything back on Monday, so I figure by the week after I'll be getting a phone call from the school or schoolboard. I'm actually kind of looking forward to it. And I'm here to say, if they ask it again on another paper....I make no promise on the response they will get then.