I was in McDonald's last week for lunch, the girl waiting on me was about 18 or so. My total came to $5.97. I gave her $6.00. She cleared the screen somehow, and had to ask her manager what my change would be for $6.00 for the total of $5.97. The manager told her 3 cents.

When I happen to go through the drive through, and the total is say, $5.26, and I give them a $10.00 bill, plus 26 cents, so I can get a $5.00 bill back, they just stare at me, or even ask me why I'm giving them the change. I've even had one person tell me I couldn't give them the extra coin.

My niece had an after school job a few years ago at the local ice cream place. The register didn't tell you how much change to give, and she didn't know how to make change. My sister-in-law was upset because her high school didn't teach her how to make change.

Don't schools teach this? I was taught how to make change when I was in 3rd grade. I hate to think of young people not learning basic math skills, and I won't even go into spelling and grammar. Schools must be much different now.

My 2 boys are 10 and 12. I have to help them with their math because my wife (who works in the their school) can't figure it out. Some of the stuff is so complex I have to scratch my head and think...But your right, it's incredible the easy stuff they can't even do? They can't even tell time with a watch with only the hands...I try and teach them myself, everyone know what that's like.

Our job as parents is to produce independent thinkers.

Government schools produce dependents. Dependent on what, you ask?

Government. A self-fulfilling prophesy.

We used to play "Store". I think that's where I learned to make change.

Another game my grandpa taught us was Cribbage. It makes you count, and count fast.

I don't think they teach. But wait till the new indoctrinated crew grows up. Singing praises to the "ONE" doesn't teach that "Change" is all that's left.

I went through the Sonic drive-thru and gave the girl $12 so I could get a $5 back. She was confused and asked why I gave the extra $2. When I told her, she paused and said "wow, that's good math!" (Que Rod Serling here). She still screwed up the silver part of the change, even with the register showing what it was supposed to be.

I don't think Darwin took into account the cute and dumb combo.

Hope and change.

I hope they get my change right.

It has happened to me as well. But I do know they teach it here because I helped my granddaughter in math all last year in the 3rd grade and that was part of her curriculem. So I know she knows how to do it right now. Hopefully it sticks.

The embarrasing part was that by the Christmas break, I was struggling to help her. I had forgotten so much.

Jimi wrote on Oct 8^th, 2009 at 12:12pm:

It has happened to me as well. But I do know they teach it here because I helped my granddaughter in math all last year in the 3rd grade and that was part of her curriculem. So I know she knows how to do it right now. Hopefully it sticks. The embarrasing part was that by the Christmas break, I was struggling to help her. I had forgotten so much.

The problem is, how many young boys and girls have mom, dad, grandpa or grandma to help them? In the big cities, not too many.

My former bank used to have it spelled out on the screen for the tellers what change to give out, breaking it down to # of 5's, # of 1's, # of quarters, etc.  They had to go to the screen to make change.  I thought banks should be a little higher on the food chain than McD's, but found out differently.

Jerry

Happens all the time.  I'll give the cashier change, so I don't get back a bunch of change, and I can see their eyes glaze over in confusion.  That's why I like Quick Trip (local gas/convience store), they always count back the change.

Learning to count....hmmm.....interesting......I wonder if they teach that in school?

I know another thing they don't teach properly in school. Composition.

Quote:

We used to play "Store". I think that's where I learned to make change.

Yeah. We did that too with my toy cash register....no batteries.

Kids here don't seem to have trouble with it but I don't get around much. Mostly, people with hair as gray as mine do well.

Charlie

Another thing not taught in today's schools is manners. Or respect. They are all taught everyone is "special" or "unique"..yeah right. You are unique just like everybody else. It's all about them until they think they need something, then they are rude about it. As if the world owes them. How about a little respect to your elders, or say...other humans? Emo this you slack-jawed, waste of my time and air. Go get your hair cut and maybe lay off the razor blades there Marilyn Manson. (sheesh..sorry. That was not a generalization. To a specific individual at the Valero station.)

I am also fed up with pants being worn around the knees. Sagging or what ever the hell they call it. Ok, fashion is one thing, but to actually hinder your ability to walk is another.I saw this one kid in COLLEGE the other day with his pants so low you could see his leg below his boxers and yet above his belt. He was holding them up by the crotch, and carrying a skateboard; yeah, as if he'd be able to ride it. I think his back pockets may have been in his shoes for crying out loud. [/rant]

Maybe I'm just too old.
Eric

Yep, we are getting old. I remember my parents saying the same thing about me in the 60's. Wearing my hair like a girl, guys wearing earings and weird clothes, listening to devils music and rioting in the streets. We have become our parents. ::)

Why don't you wear your hair like a girl any more Jimi?  I'd like to see that! ;D

Jerry

I refer back to the first 5 words of my post.  Old age. Seriously, if I had hair, I would probably wear it long. But enough about that, back to the dumb younger generation. 8-)

This has been going on for years -- they're not teaching the "basics" any more in school. Kids are not even being taught to write in cursive any more. They're actually learning to PRINT their names instead of signing them.

What we got in high school back in the day (and I'm older than Charlie OR Jimi) was MORE than most kids are getting today graduating from college.

But it is a sad state of affairs when a kid can't figure out you need 3 cents change... and a little scarey...

BD :-*

We have a bunch of ill mannered, ignorant, sloppily dressed, pierced, tattooed, ungrateful kids growing up all over the country.

What the hell generation raised these bums?

BobG wrote on Oct 9^th, 2009 at 12:20pm:

We have a bunch of ill mannered, ignorant, sloppily dressed, pierced, tattooed, ungrateful kids growing up all over the country. What the hell generation raised these bums?

Yours. ;)

Brew wrote on Oct 9^th, 2009 at 1:08pm:

BobG wrote on Oct 9th, 2009 at 12:20pm: We have a bunch of ill mannered, ignorant, sloppily dressed, pierced, tattooed, ungrateful kids growing up all over the country. What the hell generation raised these bums? Yours. ;)

HAHAHA I don't mind the pierced, tattooed, or the music they ...I...listen to. It's the attitude, lack of manners, and overall who gives a shit responsibilities I have a problem with. Bah...we're going to hell on the teenager express...hold on.

As far as basic math is concerned, nope, the kids carry calculators on their cell phones or their laptops to school.  Who needs to know addition, subtraction, multiplication or division.  There are buttons on the calculator that do it for them.  The only thing they are learning is which button does what!

These are our future leaders.  Go ahead, shoot me now.

Sandy

AND.......

Don't get me on the pants hanging down over or below the butts.

We stopped in at a fast food restaurant one time and the boy behind the counter, who was going to be serving us our food, wore his pants belted below his butt, with boxers showing underneath the pants.  However, his belt appeared to be slipping, so his boxers were being pulled down and the crack of his butt was very visible.  He kept reaching down behind himself to grab the belt to pull his pants and boxers up, obviously touching his butt crack with his bare hand.  He's then going to put my fries in their little sack and give it to me?????

I said nothing to the kid, but did ask to speak with the manager.  The manager for that day was another kid, not much older than the other one.  He said he was really sorry and would re-make my order - THE SAME KID WOULD BE SERVING, and he had not been told to go into the bathroom and remedy his pants problem and wash his hands. I said no thanks and left.

Sandy

Rotten little whippersnappers.

Charlie  :o

DeStijl wrote on Oct 9^th, 2009 at 4:36pm:

Brew wrote on Oct 9th, 2009 at 1:08pm: BobG wrote on Oct 9th, 2009 at 12:20pm: We have a bunch of ill mannered, ignorant, sloppily dressed, pierced, tattooed, ungrateful kids growing up all over the country. What the hell generation raised these bums? Yours. ;) HAHAHA I don't mind the pierced, tattooed, or the music they ...I...listen to. It's the attitude, lack of manners, and overall who gives a shit responsibilities I have a problem with. Bah...we're going to hell on the teenager express...hold on.

Again, unless the kids came out of the womb full grown and on their own, somebody (in most cases) was responsible for teaching them how to navigate this world. 

There are a lot of good kids out there.  Unfortunately, it's the bad kids that catch our attention.

BTW, Jimi, did you ever try to listen to any of those records backward to see if there was actually any meaning to the words *devil music*?

It's sad and disappointing to know kids today can't make change, write, or do anything without a machine telling them how and what. It's really bad that, at the bank, they need to show the tellers how much money to hand out, and in what form!

But then, these kids have parents to give them their $ to spend, except it comes from a debit card. My niece would go shopping and not have any idea if the change she was getting was right or not.

God forbid they should actually work for money to pay for things, like rent, utilities, food and the clothes on their back. I moved out of the house 2 weeks after I turned 17, and I had a job to pay for the cost of living. I didn't get help from my parents. I worked in a restaurant at the time, and got free meals when I worked. Buying food was the last thing I did, after paying my bills.

I think the baby boomer generation started a whole new way of life for kids. Allowance? What's an allowance? Hell, let's just support our kids, give them money for whatever they want, whenever they want. And now these kids are doing the the same for their kids.

I've heard many kids complain to their parents about not getting this or that. Mom or dad is laid off, family income has been slashed, but god forbid the kids should get a job and help out with family expenses. And yet they live at home for free. I get tired of hearing how hard kids have it today.

Sandy, I know what you mean about having pants hanging down below their butt. I thought that style went out years ago.

I guess I'm getting old.

Quote:

....I know what you mean about having pants hanging down below their butt. I thought that style went out years ago.

It's supposed to go out of style before you walk out of the exam room at the free vaccination clinic. ;D

As a teacher I see the other side. Delta brought up the best point. It is not a teachers job to do it all. Our nurses spend way to much time redressing kids that come to school inappropriate. I have given out to much of my string to pull those pants up. Umm who bought the pants?? Not the school! I have kindergarten children coming to me with no manners, yet we are supposed to work miracles. Maybe teachers could spend more time on educational needs of the kids if we weren't dealing with so many behavior issues. Spelling, handwriting, and counting IS in our curriculums. I can't tell you how many times I have tried to call parents and can't reach them for days or when I do they are so clueless what to do. It takes a team to raise a child. We need to stop critizing the schools and the parents and work together!!!

Charlotte

as a general rule I have seen curriculum take a major downward turn over the years. ESPECIALLY IN MATH!!

Children are horrible with regards to math but it is the schools that now foster scores for standardized tests which do not address such skills.
The teachers in many schools are not allowed to teach outside of the given curriculum so we wind up with highschoolers who still use their fingers and toes to count.

It's sad

Charlotte, you're right, teachers shouldn't have to teach children skills that should be taught by parents. I can't believe that parents don't understand this! Just send the child to school, let the teacher teach them life skills, AND the curriculum. It does take a team, but it also takes, as Hillary said, a village to teach a child. Parents can't expect a teacher to do it all.

When I was in school, we used manners and showed respect that was taught by our parents. If the teacher sent home a note, or called the parents, the parents would not only be embarrased, but the kid in question would be punished. If we came home and said the teacher was picking on us, our parents would say "Too damn bad!" Our parents didn't take the side of the child. That's how we learned to get along, and show respect.

The neighborhood adults were instrumental in helping to teach us, as kids. It was expected, and not seen as butting in, and it worked. But our parents were responsible for teaching us, ultimately.

If teachers weren't expected to teach kids what parents should be, then maybe more time could be spent on educational skills. I'm not saying every family is like this, obviously, there are good parents and great kids. But it seems this is the minority.

My fourth grade teacher grabbed me and dragged me across the classroom...squeezed my arm a lot in doing so...while telling me what a little shit...not her word...I was that morning. I was so embarrassed that I was Boy Scout for the rest of the year and beyond. She'd be in jail for that today.

They should bring back the draft. The kids in uniform are almost always polite and thoughtful to others. You gotta be proud of them.

Charlie

Parents now a days show up (sometimes) for parent teacher conferences.  They (as a general rule) are not involved in their children's school life.  I am one parent who knows most moves my kids make, and am the first one to be in the office when something has gone wrong (on either side - student or teacher)  The current principle at the high school hates to see me show up cause he never knows what exactly has happened.

My kids know that if THEY don't inform me, and I find out through other means, then they are in double trouble.  I have ongoing and constant communication with the schools.  I know my kids friends, where they live, their phone numbers, and their parents.

That's how I was raised.  It drives my kids nuts that I know things they don't think I know.  I believe in giving them enough rope to hang themselves (failure teaches) then shortening their rope dramatically until it's time to let it out slowly again.

My kids could all read, count, know their alphabet and colors etc. long before they entered kindergarten.  My secret weapon?  My children have been read to LITERALLY since the delivery room.

Teach them to read young and they will be able to discover ways to solve other problems - especially math word problems.  Making change is the easiest thing in the world.  It is appalling that today's youth is so far behind living in the real world.  Won't college be a treat for them.  Or have college profs taken to hand holding too?

Cat who is disgusted with the education system.

If every parent was as aware and open minded as Cat, it would be easier to teach. I LOVE that suportive parent, the one that says I'll be there next period and sit with my child. Oh , how embarrassing, but effective. So many parents just aren't available. How have we become so busy at home and teaching curriculms at school to let this get so out of hand!? I'm waiting for the pendylum to swing back and day!

Charlotte