Michelle Nelson4 said:I’ve actually stopped driving to work altogether—mostly because I’m working remotely now—so the whole idea of carpooling even part of the way is pretty much off the table. I was initially open to that option, but given my current setup, he’ll just have to take the subway or walk (though an electric scooter would be great for certain stretches, I know they probably won't go for that)
As for the traffic in Cleveland, I’d rather not go there. Every single time we head that way and hop off the bypass, I find myself staring at those bizarre intersections thinking, "What on earth is happening here?" 😁 And whenever we run into a cyclist out on the road, my only honest thought is that they must have some sort of death wish...
That doesn't change much, honestly. You can only drive them in the morning anyway; for the afternoons, they'll just have to rely on public transit or walking from school.
Michelle Nelson4 said:How could she not know how much time she needs? She has Google Maps at her fingertips. My daughter uses it religiously, and she’s even been using it to scout out schools and stuff 😁
Honestly, it bugs me how today's younger generation seems less resourceful than we were at their age, despite having way more tools to help them navigate life. So, I make a point of pushing her to figure things out on her own 😁 When we were recently in New York City, I was the one giving all the directions on our first day. But by the second day, it was suddenly—"Check Google, find which train goes to which platform, see where we need to transfer, which stop to get off at, how to actually find the platform, which train is arriving, making sure we don't miss our exit, where the stairs are, where we head once we're out..." and wouldn't you know it, after just three trips, she had it all figured out 😬
Now, she’s planning the whole trip from the house to the hotel, including everything from check-in procedures and luggage rules to navigating the airport itself ☕
But how is she supposed to know about traffic jams or construction? It doesn't matter if the app says it'll take 15 minutes to get to downtown Cleveland when it actually takes 45. 😂 They aren't really city people; this winter was our first time heading into the city, and they don't find it particularly exciting or interesting. When we got lost on the way to downtown, she found her way using the maps, so I'm not worried about her sense of direction. 🤣
I think I’ll just put together a list of schools located within an hour or maybe 75 minutes at most. It’s a list, after all—otherwise, she won't have any way of knowing how much travel time she needs to get around a city like New York City. 🤷 Once she picks her school or schools, I'll have her practice the commute using public transit.
Luckily, I can drop her off near plenty of those schools in the morning, so at least she won't have to worry about having to wake up at 5:00 AM.
urbantinker8, I'm not sure which part of the city you're in, but from my place, it takes me at least an hour to get to downtown by bus on a good day. According to Google Maps, it'll take her an hour and 40 minutes to get to the suburbs. I'm definitely going to tell her that the suburbs just aren't an option. I don't quite get how she thinks the location and the commute wouldn't be a dealbreaker.
I guess I shouldn't even mention that an hour and 40 minutes doesn't account for any unexpected delays or the usual bus being skipped.🤔
How could that be? 🤔 For example, there's no way my daughter would end up doing anything out in the suburbs or over in Jersey City. I can't let her commute to a school that takes almost two hours one way. 🤷 Once enrollment starts, she'll get a list of schools within about an hour's drive, and then she can just pick one.
Well, now I’m actually starting to like graphic design 😂 To be honest, back when I was picking out my major, my friend's buddies used to give him a hard time for being a little too eccentric 😬
nimblelynx7 said:Back in St. Louis, we have an arts academy—it’s technically a school for applied arts. I’ve had to swing by there a few times for work, and honestly, the scenes are pretty wild. We walked past dozens of students, and man, they are inspired by everything under the sun. Hair colors that look like a botched paint job from an auto shop, hairstyles that look like a failed experiment at a salon, and clothing styles that scream "natural disaster meets zero cares given"... And yeah, every single one of them was smoking right out front of the building.
All applied arts students are just the absolute best, aren't they? 😍
Well, I personally view group play as a core part of learning, especially since kids shouldn't be forced to participate if they aren't feeling it—they can always engage through other activities instead. It’s similar to how we don't really count art class as part of the standard lecture-style curriculum where you're expected to just sit still and listen.😁 Back when my kids were in preschool, they spent an immeasurable amount of time outdoors just playing. To be clear, I don't think it's a bad thing to shift gears at one point in life. Even though my little one's elementary school was wonderful, it's just a fact that this is a much more mature and responsible stage of life. From packing their own backpack and pencil case, to making sure they don't waste paper, completing all their homework, and working on those take-home projects... it's all a natural progression, but unless kids are attending a Waldorf school, I'd say there's definitely significantly less playtime compared to preschool.😁
It just goes to show how much schools differ; my daughter was always one of the first to finish her assignments, so she’d be done in less than an hour. Then you have the kids who stretch things out, working on homework until the very end of after-school care. The way American schools are set up, kids are expected to sit still and listen, with three to five hours of formal classes where they mostly just sit there quietly. I honestly don't see how you can compare that to preschool. That doesn't mean school is bad, nor does it mean everyone needs to ask for exemptions. But the reality is that kids get a lot less playtime in school compared to preschool, where they basically spend all ten hours playing or resting.
Michelle Nelson4, man, my kids will sit quietly for four hours straight, then they eat (takes a while to settle them down again), head outside for an hour, and then get right back to sitting and finishing their homework. If they power through the work quickly and my parents come over, they might squeeze in another half hour or so of playtime. So, we're looking at maybe two or three hours of play compared to the whole day at preschool? How do you even compare the two? I mean, they’ll still play, obviously, but they definitely have way less freedom than they did before starting school.
Thanks, 😁 So, if you aren't entirely sure whether you'll lean toward social sciences or natural sciences later on in college, does it really matter much if you choose the general track or the language track? I feel like the general one might have a slight edge. 😁
Wait, so both the humanities and general tracks have three hours of math in 3rd and 4th grade? If that's the case, why does the humanities track end up with fewer math hours than the general track just to make room for more language classes?
I actually loved having required reading back in high school. I was pretty much the only one in my class who genuinely enjoyed it, so I’d constantly get into deep discussions with my teacher about the books. I think I drove him a little crazy sometimes with all my cynical takes 😂 He was always pretty lenient with me, even when he knew I hadn't finished something just because I didn't feel like reading it 😁 He was honestly such a great guy 🙏
I’ve basically lived on my Kindle since I first got it. 🙏 The only way I pick up a physical book is if someone gifts me one.
People always say kids don't want to read on screens, and honestly, they're right—it’s exhausting and just feels off, even if you tweak the brightness. That’s why I swear by the Kindle; it’s such a clever little invention.
Fantasy? It’s easily my favorite genre. I’ve read just about everything—from children's books and pulp fiction to the classics and modern hits—but eventually, I landed on fantasy. And I’m not looking back. Everything else feels a bit dull to me, stuck within the same reality and the same laws of physics. With fantasy, you genuinely never know what's going to happen on the next page.