WE INTERRUPT ALL THIS BIRTHDAY FUN........
My 12 year old was suspended from school today. I get a call around 10:30 from Griffin that he has been suspended from school for three days. I asked him to put the principal on the phone so I can find out what happened. I would like to add that Griffin is a straight A student and it is very rare that he is ever in trouble. Here is the story........
- A boy brought his gameboy to school and brought it into class.
- Another boy took the cartridge out of the game (the principal said as a joke-her words) and gave the cartridge to Griffin.
- Griffin claims that he didn't know the owner of the game. He didn't want the game and he gave it to some kid that rides his bus.
- The kid that rides the bus didn't want the game and decided to smash it.
The principal told me that Griffin was not honest with her when she questioned him and therefore, he was suspended for three days. I asked her if he ever came clean with her (she said she had the boys in her office for 1 hour) and she said, " NO" (remember that for later). I told her that I thought that three days was a bit harsh. She felt that because she spent so much time with them trying to get to the bottom of things, it was fitting. Griffin is the ONLY kid that is suspended and the ONLY kid that is responsible for paying for the game.
I then came home and talked about what happened with Griffin. This is Griffin's story........
- The owner of the game found out that the first kid gave the game to Griffin. He asks Griffin for the game and Griffin tells him that he gave it to a kid on the bus. Griffin then asks the kid on the bus and he says he broke it.
- The owner of the game (BTW, he is in NO trouble for bringing a game to class when it is NOT ALLOWED tells the principal and the kids are all brought down to her office.
- The first kid says that the owner of the game was passing the gameboy around in class. He was goofing around and took the game and then gave it to Griffin. Griffin said he never saw the kid passing it around in class and had no idea whose game it was.
- The principal points to the gameboy and asks Griffin if he ever touched it. Griffin told her that he never touched it. She again points to the gameboy and asks him if he ever touched it and again he tells her that he hasn't. Griffin then realized that she wasn't talking about the gameboy but the cartridge (that isn't even there). He admits to having the cartridge and giving it to the kid on the bus.
- The kid that broke the cartridge says that it didn't have a label on it and that is why he broke it.
The principal then tells Griffin that he HAD to know whose game it was because she looked at his test scores and he was a smart boy. She never let him speak again when tried to explain that he never peeled off the label. She told him that what he did was stealing and that is what she put on his form for being suspended. That is what he will have on his permanent record. I know that my children are not perfect.... BUT.....I feel that this was wrong! How can he be suspended for the same amount of time that a kid would get for fighting? Please, if I wrong here, tell me.
Jeff called the principal and she told him a little different story. She said that Griffin wasn't telling the truth about touching the game. Jeff told her that Griffin thought she was talking about the gameboy. She then said that he did admit that he touched the cartridge and gave it to the kid on the bus. THE WOMAN TOLD ME THAT HE NEVER CAME CLEAN! She also told Jeff that she spent 45 minutes with them (she told me 1 hour & Griffin says 30 minutes) and she felt that she should have the power to decide how long a student should be suspended. She did cave in and said the the first kid should pay for 1/2 of the game. Jeff told her that a lot of it wasn't making sense and he wanted to have a meeting with all of us and her superior. My daughter told me that kids that are on drugs have been suspended for 5 days and my son is suspended for 3??? I agree that Griffin should have NEVER taken the game in the first place but the punishment does not fit the crime, IMO. Please tell me what you think. I can take it.
posted by Ava's family at 6:08 PM
12 Comments:
Raise HOLY-HELL and pull in all the higher ups. If they're going to make it painful for you, make it painful for them.
WTF????!!!!
I say you go and kick her ass, what's the worse that can happen? He's already suspended.
no.
seriously. I would fight it, and MAKE sure it is not on his record. That is ridiculous!!!! She is def. taking advantage of her power. They took up 30 minutes to an hour of her time??? Ummmmm, isn't that WHAT SHE'S PAID FOR!!!!
good grief.
Happy Birthday to you, huh.
so I guess no oils, no massage, no hot tub.......no cherries?????
That is crap! C'mon...they have drugs and booze and sex issues in schools but a gameboy game...whoa nelly!
Fight it! Hard!
Keep smilin!
I agree with Johnny and Melissa. There is no way Griffin deserves to be the only one punished here and three days is a bit over the top !!!! How is it that Griffin gets "stealing" on his record when he was not the person who took it in the first place? Is she trying to say that he should have turned it in instead of giving it to another kid???
Not a good way to end a week and especially when it's your birthday. Let's hope the principle does a little thinking over the weekend and realizes the error of her actions.
Good Luck,
Joanne
Here is a little more that I found out.....The kid that took the cartridge gave it to Griffin and said, "Here, I don't want it." He even told the principal that he said that to Griffin. He told her that he was goofing around and was going to give the cartridge back to the kid. This happened on TUESDAY and NOT ONCE between then & now has that kid asked about the game or tried to give it back. Griffin says he decided to give it to someone that could use it. Why is the first kid not in any trouble? Personally, I think the principal is friends with his family. She told my husband that she wouldn't be surprised if the kids parents had a check on her desk on Monday morning for 1/2 the game. That was BEFORE she was even going to make him pay for 1/2.
I found your blog through a friend of a friend that adopted from China. I have enjoyed reading your blog. I am a teacher and have been teaching for 10 yrs. This situation does not make sense!!! They "wasted her time"??? She is the principal...her time is supposed to be spent dealing with situations just like that one.
If games are not allowed in school then...too bad, so sad for the kid who brought it and got it smashed. I do believe that your son should not be in any trouble here at all!! If anyone is going to be punished, it should be the one that took it to begin with and the other kid who smashed it....AND the boy who brought in something that is not allowed.
This definitely sounds like there is something else going on with the principal. I would fight this all the way! There is NO way I would allow them to put "fighting" on his record. BUT, that's just my two cents! :)
Sorry for blabbing on and on. I just get soooo frustrated when teachers, principals or anyone who work in the schools are not fair with children or do not let them explain their side of things.
Good Luck!
Jennifer...a teacher in Michigan
I think you should demand that meeting and make sure you bring up the differences in explanations. If your son is a Straight A student and has never been in trouble, they need to take that into consideration. Sounds like the principal is on a power trip and taking it out on Griffin. It's his permanent record so its worth fighting for.
Deb
Waiting for this months stork to hit Canada :-)
Wow that is screwy. Go to town on that principal Momma!
Makes me mad just reading it all! Fight it, you go girl!!!
Fight! Fight! Fight!!
Keep us posted.
Julie
Fight it and get it off his record! That ticks me off.
3 days?! ONly child in trouble?! Absolutely ridiculous. And such a waste of time for everyone involved. Take it as far as it needs to go, Parents!
Post a Comment
<< Home