Pack Cell Phones and Lunch with Care for School
Start Students Off Making Good Choices about Electronics and Lunches
Jul 2, 2009
Beginning the middle school year can be somewhat nerve wracking for students and parents. Many times, discussions about the topics of cell phones and lunches need to occur before the school year. Middle school students have more autonomy, but parents still need to be involved in the decision process.
Packing Cell Phones, iPods and M3P Players
Students think that they must have their electronic devices all the time. Unfortunately, these items can be used for cheating, and they are disruptive in the classroom. Many schools have rules against having these items in school.
Stealing can also be a problem. If students feel that they need to have an iPod on the long bus ride home or on the way to an athletic event, make sure that they tuck it out of sight. Students should not be showing it off once they are in the building. And, storing it in a locker is not always a "safe" place for expensive items.
Because parents need to communicate with their children before or after schools, some schools realize that having cell phones in the building is important. However, teachers and administrators do not want to see or hear the phones during the school day. A ringing phone during a test can mean that the student can lose the phone for a school day, a detention or even worse.
Parents Tracking Cell Phone Use
Parents can track cell phone use if parents are allowing their children to use the cell phone before or after school. Many cell phone companies offer this service online. Or, as Zach Pontz reports in "Parents, Police Monitoring Kids' Cell Phones" on the CNN website [April 20, 2009] that parents can pay a small monthly fee that works on phones with Web access to show who they are calling, what they are sending and if the child has removed the software from the phone.
Taking or Buying a Tray at Lunch
Not only are parents able to track cell phone use, they can also track lunch choices. Many schools keep track of student purchases and parents can check how much students are spending or even eating. Also, many schools allow parents to put money into their child's account online.
Because middle school students are allowed to make choices about what they place on their tray, they sometimes make ones that include pizza, chicken nuggets and/or French fries every day. Of course, apples, salads, and juice are usually offered; however, some middle school students will not make good nutritional selections.
Parents should discuss making good choices with their children. They together can discuss how much pizza is enough or how many vegetables need to be eaten each week.
Since many students heading off to middle school for the first time will have some new choices for lunch and the use of electronic devices, parents need to talk to their children about the decisions the children will make on their own. Sometimes, children do not always make good choice. However, if the parents have started communicating early, hopefully the children will feel comfortable to discuss bad choices.
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