Reply #21: Longish story about my son's first grade teacher

[KitchenWitch]

A couple of stories from his elememtary school days actually.

1. We live in the suburban Twin Cities area, and we have a park reserve that abuts our backyard. Often, we hear and see coyotes back there. My son's first grade teacher asked the kids what "wild animals" live in our town, and my son raised his hand and told the class that we had coyotes in our backyard (totally true) and she, in front of the entire class told him he was lying. We went to the nature center at the park reserve and talked with the park ranger and got information for the teacher and brought it to the teacher, proving my son's assertion. She never apologized.

2. My son is an extremely gifted student (particularly in math) but works slowly and methodically, his second grade teacher (harpy bitch from hell) did not like the pace at which he worked so she put him in all the "lowest" groups, since she thought he was not very bright (this is a child that understood the concept of square roots at the age of 4). During our conferences she told me how stupid she thought he was, and I nearly came over the table to rip her face off. I told her how I had been brow-beaten for working methodically in elementary school and that at the time I was pursuing an advanced degree in college. She inferred that my son "might find a niche somewhere" (read - developmentally disabled job workshop). It took everything in my being to hold myself back. He is now in middle school and is in honors everything.