More project woe

from Anonymous:

LOL about the Greek toga! I can relate. How do they expect us to know everything?

I learned that a stola is more complicated than a toga because for a girl, it's really important you get good coverage once you get that one-bare-arm look, and it requires hardware-like jewelry as well. And it requires sewing.

So in addition to a ton of time, it cost a lot too.

No one could have made one of those without sewing skills. I shudder to think how I would have done it without a sewing machine and sewing skills.

I later learned that some of the moms spent a bundle of money on buying a stola costume, even though we were instructed to make one ourselves.

I don't know if it hurt their grades.

The whole thing is still so ugly because she's now had this Latin teacher for three years, and the Latin teacher is by far her favorite teacher.

I'm glad I never ended up speaking to the Latin teacher.

But what gets me is the disregard for the needs of parents, their free time, and the fact that they have lives.

I was once told by a teacher that I must buy and send in a grab bag prize THE NEXT DAY.

Tough love isn't the answer, though. It doesn't hurt the teacher. It only hurts the kid.

A friend told me this morning her entire family had a meltdown this weekend over their son's project - a meltdown at the level of the kid having to get out of the car and walk because he was so mad and/or because the parents were yelling (the details are hazy, but I've got the bit about the kid having to get out and walk right...)

They got where they were going an hour late & my friend burst into tears shortly after they walked in the door. Then, as they were trying not to go into the gory details, my friend finally said, "X had a project to finish this weekend."

The other dad said, "A project! Say no more."