A palace coup has taken place at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School.

Yes, without a union leader The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School has been rudderless, devoid of anyone to take charge and there to represent the constituency which is now in need of someone has strong as the previous union leader. Who can it be? Who will it be? Who wants that position?

Naturally it fell on the two who have been wishing to bogart that union leadership position for years. The Lady Macbeth's, the Selma and Patty, the Lucy and Ethel of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School.

As of press time The Crack Team has learned that Ethel, with the help of Lucy, is now the new union leader at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. A coup? Peaceful transition of power? Maybe. Or Maybe not. From what our sources have shared with The Crack Team. Lucy and Ethel didn't even wait for rigor mortis to set in before she schemed with Lucy to take over.

What can one at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School expect from Ethel as a union leader?

One can expect that you won't have someone on your side. One can expect to have someone who will acquiesce.  One can expect to have someone that will not fight for the rights and dignity of the people at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School.

Think about it. Who does Ethel most want to be liked by? Who does Ethel most seek approval from? Who will Ethel roll over on her back for in a minute and let her belly be rubbed?

People of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School should be very wary when the elections come in May. Truly think about this. Will Ethel fight the good fight?

There are many other qualified independent thinkers that ooze honor and integrity (Well actually, one left, no, make that two) at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School.

Think about it.

I often stay up at night wondering how things differ in my son's school (Harrison NY) vis a vis how things are done in NYC, in particular, PS 154. We can say, "What Would Harrison Do?" or WWHD? But please make a mental note of Harrison, for this soon will be the topic of another blog post in the
not too distant future.

First a little background.

We had a SAVE room this past year at PS 154. Not really a SAVE room, more like a Happy Good Time Emotion Response SAVE room. It was poorly run and students that got in trouble were rewarded with ice cream parties and candy. For reasons the Crack Team can only speculate, the Happy Good Time Emotion Response SAVE room was shut down in February of 2013.

Now, with elementary schools having SAVE rooms this means that such schools become suspension centers for other elementary schools from within and without the district. Students put on superintendent's suspensions are sent to such schools.

With me so far?

So these students, students that are deemed too dangerous or violent to be in their normal school setting, are sent elsewhere to schools that have a SAVE room. In fact, we at PS 154 received such a student in March.

What's that you ask? How can we have a student sent to us from another school to the SAVE room in March when you just shared that the Happy Good Time Emotion Response SAVE room at PS 154 was shut down in February?

Someone, ***COUGH*** DR Alison Coviello; PhD ***COUGH*** obviously had not. Now, was it a outright "liar, liar, pants on fire," lie, or a lie of omission?

A 5th grade student, Ezra Horowitz, was sent to PS 154 from District 10 for about 3 weeks. He punched out a teacher.

But where did they put this student that had no SAVE room to attend? Simple.

With another 5th grade class. And of course, the parents of the students in this class were never notified.

If this is not a breach of state law and the being concerned with not only the safety of the students of the 5th grade class at PS 154, but what about the education of Ezra?

According to Chancellor's Regulation A-443, Ezra is supposed to receive a classwork packet from his class. Ezra had not.

Ezra is also entitled to all related services that are on his IEP, provided he has one. Did he? Don;t know, but if he did, I doubt it.

Were Ezra parents notified that he would be in a classroom? Was his school? Were the parents of the 5th grade class.

These are all pertinent questions that should have been addressed. In fact, never needed to have been addressed, if DR Alison Coviello; PhD was doing her job and following, and not interpreting NYS law.

But apparently Ezra had some issues. On one occasion Ezra told a teacher that he wants to go bring a gun to school and shoot all the students in the 5th grade class he was assigned to at PS 154. That teacher immediately went to the chain of command to share this information. Nothing was done at all.

Which brings us back to Harrison NY.  This school year a troubled student in my son's grade, whose father happens to be a New York police officer, threatened to bring one of his father's guns to school and shoot up the entire grade. My son and a friend heard this and shared it with the principal. At no time was the buck passed, heads buried in the ground, or excuses made. This student was dealt with fairly and in an extremely timely manner. He was suspended (I forget if it was in house or at home) for two weeks.

Which leads to this question. Is DR Alison Coviello; PhD, qualified to be a school leader in Harrison NY? That is for you the reader to discuss. Remember, having PhD. really doesn't mean anything.

And would DR Alison Coviello; PhD, be able to get away with what she does at PS 154?

My son's principal doesn't have one and he knows bulletin boards are bullshit.

Sorry been away so long. Baseball season has started for my son and been busy. He is playing in the local Little League and practicing for his summer travel team as well. Been running back and forth between games, practice, and lessons.

There is so much news and information that I am currently sitting on that needs to come out. To sum it all up in a nutshell, Rome is burning and Nero is clueless.

The breaking news that came into the SBSB newsroom today shows hypocrisy and a lack of ethics at its worse, and incompetency as never seen before.

Today, a 2nd grade student by the name of Hymie Morgenstern was all alone in the main office. No one, not a soul, not a mouse, was supervising him. His reason for being there is that Hymie is no longer allowed to mingle with the other students of his very low grade outside at lunch. The PRINCess PAL using the infinite wisdom gained during 6 weeks of PRINCess PAL training has summarily disallowed Hymie from such participation since, well, since before time began.

So there is Hymie in the office with not one pedagogue, or person contractually obligated, supervising him even though he has been put in the office by,l and is the responsibility of, the PRINCess PAL. Yes, Hymie has gotten into mischief in the past. He is quite smart and has mastered how to use the PA, learned how to ring up class rooms, used the Nixon-esque paper shredder, (I am sure this will come in handy when the time comes), and other bits of mayhem. But nothing today.

Now stay with me.

Along comes Freida Weintraub of a very most upper grade. Now mind you, neither child is in line for a papal beatification. But according to sources, Hymie cracked on one of Freida's close family members which entailed Freida to lose her temper and attempt perform physical harm on Hymie.

Praise be to God that both students were restrained by responsible adults. But a bigger question looms large.

Where was the PRINCess PAL? Was the PRINCess PAL negligent in the carrying out of official duties? Time after time we have been admonished at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Center and School that we are not allowed to leave students in the hall or anywhere unsupervised. In fact, yours truly was written up by the PRINCess PAL for allegedly not reporting that four students left the classroom. Yes, students with zero credibility were believed by the PRINCess PAL.

We hear at SBSB demand a full investigation by a neutral third party of this incident. Being that we all know that the DOE is incapable of properly investigating its own (teachers don't count as their own) we call upon the Swiss School Administration Investigative Service of Zurich to take full control of of this professional misconduct perpetrated, and possible corporal punishment, by the PRINCess PAL post haste.

Of course, this will be swept under the rug or someone else will be blamed for the incompetence and professional misconduct. But, eyes are opening, people are coming in from the dark. It is all there for everyone to see. Destruction all around us.

 More from the "You can't make this shit up department."

Oh my God! The wheels are falling completely off the bus at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. The fail is going to be epic, but unseen by those with their heads so deeply buried in the ground or the (CENSORED) sphincter.

How nutty have things gotten? The shit just gets crazier by the day!

A student, one of the oldest students at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, but for the sake of the blog we shall call him Abe Vigoda turned and ratted out a teacher, who we shall call Phil Esposito.

Now Abe is the type that never ever stays in his classroom, goes where he is supposed to be, or follows any rules but his. The (CENSORED) is scared of him, or worse, has given up dealing with him. Now this has not been going on just this year. It has been like this for Abe Vigoda at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School for 4 years! Four years of getting away, and knowing he is getting away, with anything and everything.

Now there is a teacher at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, for the blog we shall call him Phil Esposito. Now Phil is a pretty decent guy, a good teacher, and has gone above and beyond for Abe numerous times in the past. But sadly, it has come to an end.

A while back Phil got a letter from of office of Equal Opportunity, or something like that, requesting a meeting with that office and a UFT rep. Why? Seems Phil was being accused of sexual harrassment. 

Phil Esposito wracked his brain trying to come up with whom he sexually harassed, or something that perhaps he said that was taken the wrong way. Nothing came to mind, not even when his UFT rep called him to tell him that all he was being investigated for was that he told a female student that she was wearing a nice dress.   

So he finally schleps out to Brooklyn for the meeting. Even the rep from EOE, whatever agency, tells him and the UFT rep this accusation is a joke and that he had nothing to be concerned with.

But, Phil Esposito did find out that it was Abe Vigoda that made the complaint. Now conjecture would lead one to believe that either (CENSORED) encouraged Abe to make the phone call (Which the Crack Team highly doubts) and complaint, or even more worrisome, that Abe Vigoda made the phone call on his on from his own home. 

There are any number of reasons why Abe did this. First and foremost is that Abe knows he can do and get away with anything he wants, whenever he wants. That is the culture of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. As long as he his happy, we all are happy. Just like that Twilight Zone episode with Bill Mumy.

But Abe Vigoda has the run of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School and he knows it and takes full advantage of it. But as long as he is happy and everyone else is miserable, well, that is all that matters.

Oh what a joy it is to be back at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School after almost two weeks. Sadly, what was is, and what is, will be for the foreseeable future.

Today, one of the teachers at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School was attempting to teach a 5th grade 12:1 one class. Yes, this is a rough class, but the kids are generally
good.

Today the class was different. Keith Partridge and Danny Partridge happened to show up today. Keith, a student who never stays in a classroom and wanders the halls all day started up immediately with the teacher. He was disrespectful and was getting the other students to be disrespectful as well. Keith was openly mocking the teacher even after he was warned that the Responder on Duty (ROD) would be called if this anti-social behavior continued. It did, and even though the ROD was the BIGGEST ROD, BIG ROD was called.

Well, as soon as the call was placed, Keith got up from his seat threw several chairs and a garbage can and told the teacher to, "fuck off, you're an asshole," while flipping the teacher the middle finger.

Meanwhile, Danny Partridge feeling that he was not getting attention of his own continued his own anti-social and somewhat curious behavior as well. When threatened with an immediate call placement to his mommy, Danny said, "I don't care." The call was placed.

Danny immediately was deflated and lost the tough guy persona as mommy was letting him have it. After he handed the phone back to the teacher and the teacher said goodbye and thank you to his mommy, Danny had exhibited the wisdom of a lesson well learned.

"Suck my dick!" he screamed at the teacher as he stormed out of the room. Again, following The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School protocol a call was placed for the BIG ROD to come and take care of this.

No mind you, the teacher also followed the protocol of reducing their color cards, though both said they don't care. As well as they shouldn't for there are no real consequences.

But back to Danny, he eventually made it back to the class, came in, and asked the teacher another call would be placed to his mother for his suggestion several minutes early. Danny decided to raise the previous suggestion and countered this time with an observation in which he called the teacher, a "dick sucker!"

With this observation, Danny left the room. Only to return several minutes late again with Keith just as the BIG ROD showed. Oh, and while the BIG ROD was standing at the door, Keith was attempting to conspire with Danny in how they can lie and make all that happened the teacher's fault.

After this all happened, the students went to lunch where Keith and Danny were seen having fun in the lunch room and even more fun outside in the yard. Yeah, they really learned their lesson.

So why does situations like this continue to occur at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School? Simple, because those in power have low expectations of these students as well as believing that they, the great white, upper class no what is best for this students.

Too often we hear in our schools, "Awww, this behavior is normal because of the lives they lead, what they have been through, etc..."  I say BULLOCKS! Quite the opposite, because of the lives these students have, of what they seen, of what they have been exposed to we must set the boundaries, mete out immediate, yet fair consequences for unwelcome behavior and let the students know that they are students and the teachers are there to teach them and give them life lessons.

But being the white, upper class, Ivy bred, upper echelon type that believes they know what is best for these students, well, how can you know the culture of the South Bronx when you have spent your life being raised on silver spoons in Upper Saddle River?

This kind of language to fellow student and to staff would never be accepted in Upper Saddle River or any district in Bergen County. And if won't be accepted there it mustn't be accepted in the South Bronx.

All is not happy, least of all the books in the library at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, where learning, reading, and writing supposedly come first.

For several months now, The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School has been without a professional in the library for several months. For years there had been a professional in the library, but alas, there is a professional no more. What is the The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School to do without one?

One can safely assume in a place such as The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School in which a premium is placed on the students having a happy good time learning, reading, and writing. One can assume that students needs and having a library professional in place would take precedence over those with ego and control issues. Sadly, The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School is not such a place.

Not only is there not a professional in the library at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, but worse, the library is closed. Closed by a (CENSORED!) due to no library professional on staff. Why? Spite mainly. But more so out of having to control everything at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School.

One could ask why not ask those that are not of a professional nature to receive training and volunteer their time on a rotating basis in seeing to the upkeep and professional duties at the library at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School? Yes, these volunteers won't bring to the table the full library experience that a professional does but they will be just as valuable in providing services to the students that are always deemed to come first and that the (CENSORED!) claims are so important.

These volunteers can be in the library supervising the students, checking books in and out and re-shelving books. The dividends would be extraordinary. Students will be able to check out books and have a lifetime love of reading. Maybe the hours won't be the entire school day, but something is better than nothing.

There are also computers in the library that not only the students don't have access to, but staff as well. For some reason the (CENSORED!) seems to think this is a good thing. Students can't access learning and staff are unable to work on their craft.

But this is life at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. Where everything, down to how one shall make a proper doody is in the school handbook. The North Korean government is less controlling of its citizenry than the (CENSORED!) at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School.

It is getting goofier by the day at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. No one, not even the good Lord himself can make this shit up.

Now remember before the tale is told, The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School uses the most awesome as well and most excellent PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) system. The key to this system is the card. A student starts at neutral (white), they do well and the student gets a green then a blue card, and when you are a bad child you go from yellow to red. Got it?

The problem is twofold. One, the students who get to red on a consistent basis, and there are plenty don't give a shit, that no matter how often their card lands on red it ain't gonna change a thing. Two, what are the consequences of getting on red? The students who are from the above group supposedly get a phone call home but these are the students of the parents who do jack as parents anyway so what is the purpose of the red card and the phone call?

So today at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School a class of over hyper 4th graders just after lunch went to their specialty class out of control. Oh, and with their portable (from their homeroom)  PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) card system.

First, Izzy Rabinowitz was screaming at the teacher, cursing the teacher and telling the teacher to go to hell. The reason for this was the teacher had promised punitive measures to Izzy that if he did not stay on line and discontinue his abhorrent behavior towards the other students and the teacher. Luckily for this teacher, a concerned non pedagogue took pity and seperated Izzy from the rest of the class.

Meanwhile Izzy's best friend, Shecky Green annoyed that he was facing the same consequences as Izzy due to his bad behavior started having a tantrum and throwing chairs in the classroom and threatening to hit other students with a yard stick.

The teacher, following proper protocol for The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, notified the office so the ROD (Responder on Duty and this will be explained in another blog post) will whisk these two students away. The person on the other end of the line recommended that the teacher call a quite high up, but not the highest up upper echelon type person to respond. The teacher promptly did.

What follows is the truly from the files of "you can't make this shit up."

Teacher: Shecky is throwing chairs, threatening students with a yard stick.

The quite high up, but not the highest up upper echelon type: Did you change Shecky's card to red?

Teacher: He came into the class with his card on red, there is no other card to put him on except double secret red.

The quite high up, but not the highest up upper echelon type: Did you try other strategies to keep him from throwing the chairs?

Teacher: Yes, I asked him nicely and said please.

The quite high up, but not the highest up upper echelon type: (frustrated sigh) I'll be right there.

There you have it. There is no way, no how, no chance this shit can be made up.

I wonder (as I rub my chin looking skyward) does this happen in Scarsdale? Does a version of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School exist in Chappaqua? I wonder.

When last we visited The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School we saw how the proverbial doody is hitting the proverbial fan. That ain't nothing.

The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School is now nothing more than a train wreck awaiting the clean up crew wreckage of corpses of hope and education of what will ceased to be, especially after tonight's PEP meeting.

To say that there is no direction at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School is an understatement. Yes, we here at SBSB do believe that the intentions of the decision makers at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School were the best, however one can only look and see with the carnage of all about The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. Incredulously, those in charge saw that what was intended wasn't working, and they didn't alter course. They did not see that to continue to wish that they're failings become success is nothing more than complete negligence on their part.

As mentioned in back on March 7 about a the riot, who is paying the price for this at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School? The students involved in the riot? The students on the periphery of the riot who though not rioting do involve themselves in severely disruptive behavior day in and day out? No, of course not. That will be too difficult. The easy way is to make every student pay. Yeah, the students who come to The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School expecting to learn, expecting to be safe, and expecting to be happy, are the ones that are paying the price. Why? Simple. Because God forbid the "disruptors" are made to feel sad about themselves, not happy about The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. It is all about placating such students and "to hell" the students who wish to learn.

There are simple reasons why this is happening. One is the general attitude of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School Christ induce figure. The figure looks down at these children of color and sees them as group that needs to be conformed, to be saved, to be tamed, to be corrected. This reminds me of meeting Evangelical Christians who felt that I as a Jew needed to conform, to be saved, to be tamed, and to be corrected. So like the Jews, the boys and girls of color  at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, will have their souls saved by the "Mythical in their Own Mind Great White Person."

Besides, there is no place to put the disruptive students. There had been a place to save them, but they can be saved no more for that avenue is closed. Instead of these students truly being saved (CENSORED)saved them is busy at the (CENSORED) running contests, ice cream parties and assuring that (CENSORED)fecal matter shant ever smell again. Rumor has it that cherry flavored Kook-Aid keeps the smell (CENSORED)at bay.

But who cares about the students at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School being SAVEd when other outside violent students need be saved? These students look to be saved but instead are thrown into the population of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School where the disruption they have caused elsewhere just continues and destroys another child's education. 

Maybe the good Lord above can come down and save these students. For these students need a deity, or Jeebus to come to them. Or someone that is not too busy.

Sadly, almost all eyes at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School are closed wide shut. Almost all heads at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School are buried in the sand. Almost all eyes at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School all closed real tight wishing that the problems will go away. Those that have tricked themselves into believing that it is better at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School than the before time have truly tricked themselves. These people can be saved. They must be saved.

For those that look to the top of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School and only see Jim Jones spoon feeding them the Kool Aid, sadly it is too late.

Where is The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School's only hope, Obi Wan Kenobi?

With what metaphor do I use to describe the state of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School? The proverbial shit has hit the proverbial fan? The wheels of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School are coming off? Turn off the lights, The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School is over, all good things must end?

The first sign on the poop hitting the fan came several months ago when students were kept away from the room in which they can hit and kick the Bobo doll so they can feel better about themselves instead of owning up to their disruptive and destructive tendencies. Apparently it was deemed more worthy for students to create make believe feel good worthless acting projects, or finger paint, or to play board games, or just running out of class and being rewarded with ice cream. Oh, and candy.

There was a near riot last week at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. It was inevitable. This was bound to happen. Some say what triggered the near riot was what could be called a gang assault. But not to mind, all is well. All is happy.

It never had to come to this. Sadly, The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School has been using the discipline code suggested on these pages 4 years ago, though with one caveat. The dreaded card system of PBIS (Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports) in which when you do good you get a green then a blue card, and when you are a bad child you go from yellow to red.

So what if this has been proven to be a disaster at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School.

So what if this system of rewards has a plantation "the massa or the missus" type of mentality.

So what if the Assertive Discipline advocated and found by Lee Canter works.

So what if the rewards promised through this bogus card system don't work because the students want instant gratification, the rewards now, not when the accumulate enough "credits."

It is all about taming, sublimating, those great unwashed boys and girls of color. Because only the great white hype in their own mind knows what is best.

So what if the problems that started in September were stopped then and there, the shit flying now would not be happening.

But of course, all the children must come to The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School to be happy, for they all come from unhappy homes (BIGOTED THINKING!!). School is a happy (puke) place.  Just an aside, my 6th grade son has no business being happy in school. He is there to learn. Sorry. That is reality, that is how it is.

But if students are supposed to feel happy at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School how can you feel happy when you feel unsafe?

But the men of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School have been effectively neutered if they are not bleeding hear liberals and the flunkies are rewarded.

A student who gets in the most trouble at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School shared something very interesting with The Crack Team. This student, Chaim Rosenberg, said "the teachers are too nice." What does that tell you?

Oh, there is fun to be had every day at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, but only if you seek it.

The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School has turned into nothing more than a playroom. A place where students, those students that disrupt their classes, throw chairs, run through the halls, punch and kick teachers are punished by being able to finger paint play with dolls, and have ice cream parties.

Nothing is taken seriously. It is all about making the students feel good. So what if Ezra in 5th grade tells a female teacher to "suck his dick," so what if Schlomo in 5th grade tells a teacher he will "put a cap in you after school," who cares if Menachem never shows up to class. These students know that in The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School there will be zero consequences, for the good time that is awaiting them is worth getting to all the trouble they can and avoiding all the education they want.

Now, yes, we all want our students, to feel good. We all know that most of our students come from severely fractured homes. We as teachers wish we can save each and everyone of these students, to make them better people, to make them better students, to see them grow and succeed. But they cannot be coddled. They don't want to, nor do they respect being coddled.

 Most of the students who are involved in inappropriate actions at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School are boys. These boys, not all of them, but a goodly amount come from matriarchal homes, homes that have been matriarchal for generations. These boys have never had a positive male role model on their lives. They are crying out for that male role model, not only for what they are missing from having a second parent at home, but more importantly, a person who will be in their lives that offers guidance, boundaries, and knowledge of what they are going through as young men.

The students of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School can smell bullshit from a mile away, are smart enough to know when they are being patronized and condescended to, and don't have a modicum of respect for those that treat them in such a manner. These are kids of the Projects, of the Streets, they have seen too much, been fooled too much, to allow someone to pander to them.

The students of The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School know how to manipulate the emotions of those that pander to them. Those panderers might think they are getting through, but rather they are being played like a cheap accordion bought in a long lost tag sale.

The students respect toughness along with boundaries and the ability to say what you mean and do what you say. There have been too many students over the years that have said, some as young as 2nd grade, that they respect someone because they "don't allow me to get away with anything."

So as long as The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School attitude is still in place, we will lose these students whose behavior is so atrocious but just as bad we will lose the students whose behavior and positive attitude for education is above reproach for they are in an atmosphere where learning and safety are lost because the wrong approach to discipline has been implemented.

I have written extensively about The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School several times. A place where reality stops, and fantasy rules. Sadly, it seems that reality is slowly creeping back in.

At The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, where every student no matter their circumstances is special and knows that they will always get the upper hand over a teacher, mayhem and madness is the rule and not the exception.

Professionals at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School have shared with The Crack Team that despite all efforts to make every student a winner at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, mayhem rules in a certain grade and the efforts to ensure that every student wins, every student is rewarded, and that every student is special as instead not empowered the students to be the best that they can be. Instead, the students know that they can manipulate their way into getting what they want, expect what they want immediately, and the bad behavior of years past have not, nor or likely to change.

These same professionals, according to The Crack Team, afraid to attempt any disciplinary routines upon these students for fear that they might be shat upon for not only not following proper The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School official disciplinary protocol, but fear being shat upon for upsetting the students sensitive natures that might momentarily impart a second or two of low self-esteem in such students.

And though this is The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School the same students, still roam the school each and every day without consequences. These students are having a happy good time.

But the teachers are not. It is not a The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School for a vast majority of teachers. When teachers at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School are visceral hobbled from doing their jobs, when they know that whatever happens is their fault, when they get no support at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School, they then are not happy, not having a good time, and their responses will be quite emotional.

Wow, I have been gone for some time now.  According to SBSB records the last blog post was October 2. Unfortunately, I have been quite busy of late and have had a bad case of writer's block. But not to fear, as when the blog started back in 2008, I have recently been blessed with a whole slew of fresh material to blog about.  For those haters of the blog and for those that need their SBSB fix, I and the Crack Team are back.

So, what is new? My school, PS 154 in the Bronx has been slated for closure. Actually a decision has yet to be made, but rather the euphemism, "Early Engagement Process," is being used.

I'm not going to get into the details on the process of how the school will go about being saved or closed, you can read it on the handout we were given in our teacher's meeting after school last Monday, October 15 which you can see below. 

154x

District 7 superintendent Yolanda Torres and network leader Debra Lamb met with the staff in the library last week. Amongst what we were told, besides the "this is a beginning, not an end," and "this is a great opportunity," is;

The DOE will look at the entirety of the school community. The decision will be "holistic," based on the feedback of the parents, the staff, and the education process.

PS 154 is in this predicament because of three years on a row of C, C, and last year, an F.

Our last quality review was in December 2009 in which we were proficient. So how did we get a C that year?

So what is it we were told is next?

Come November and December feedback and data will be collected. During the winter, a decision will be made in, I would presume, a Caesarean manner. Thumbs up or thumbs down. But wait, there will be one last hurdle. The phaseout, if there is one, will go before the Panel for Educational Policy and the jibe I got, and I am sure the parents got, was that the PEP is a bastion of independent neutrality and the decision will be made.

When the questions came to ask the superintendent, I of course brought to Yolanda Torres;

"our budget has been cut over a million dollars over the last 4 or so years. We have no math coach, no literacy coach, not AIS teachers, no full time SETSS teacher. We are being asked to be in a race that we are starting 100 yards behind the starting line. The decision to close the school or not is all based on which side of the bed Uncle Mike or Sock Puppet Walcott wake up on that morning. It's as if we are being set up to fail"

That statement was met with silence.

To the parents of 154, you are being conned. Ask yourself why is this being done? Because they can. They know by seeing 30 parents showing up for the parents meeting that they can get away with this. Think about this. Will this be done on the Upper East Side? Riverdale? Forest Hills? The south end of Staten Island? NEVER!!!

As parents you should be up in arms at the lack of any support. The shoving down our throats of a bogus curriculum from Tweed. Your children's education is at stake. Your community is at stake. Your children are nothing but one vast data collection to the corporatists and profiteers that have taken control of the NYC DOE. Be angry at the people making the decisions.The time to stand up is now, not tomorrow, not next year, but today!

The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School is a happy place, an innovative place, a place in which the students themselves suffer no consequences and all is joyful.

Students, usually the same ones every single day, who don't wish to go to class are coddled and given walks around the school all day long in which to contemplate how to keep from going to class the next day.

So what if the wandering student doesn't learn, or even comes from a dysfunctional home. What matters is that the student feels safe and responsive at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School and knows that all he or she needs to do to avoid sitting in the classroom is to throw a tantrum, whine, or act out in order to wander the halls, escorted, day after day after day.

The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School opens its arms to all. A big demented symbolic smile is etched across the school as it opens its symbolic arms to the community. It's a The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School that loves all and wants to be loved in returned.

Conformity is the norm. All must be the same, all must not be different. Not only for the students, but those that are involved in the students education.

Group thought reigns. Whether it be the smiles that must be plastered on the faces, or the "gee whilickers, every morning is just fucking great" attitude all must be possessed or the wrath will be turned upon those that don't.

Those who are involved in the education of students are expected to walk the same amount of goose steps to and fro throughout the The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. No deviation is allowed from the burning bush. All is known, all is correct, and those that speak up, will soon be put down.

Worse for those that educate at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School is those that wish to shine on their own. Those that are creative, those that think outside of the box, are soon hammered down like a nail. A nail that can't be acknowledged.

All this is just an ersatz education. Smoke and mirrors. There is not there there, no substance at The Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. How can it be when the curriculum is just the pigeon poop of education? Gee, the scores are low, the students aren't able to read, so let's double down on the same old crap that is being pushed on the students like a dealer selling more and more smack to a junkie?

Wait a waste, what a scam, what a con being done to the children and families of NYC.

This might seem off topic, but it just came to my mind.

Would any of the bullshit that is perpetrated day in and day out in the NYC DOE be tolerated for more than a minute in the suburbs?

What you are about to read is true. The only thing added is the special kind of snarkiness and sarcasm that is so inherent to this blog. But file this under, "you won't believe the shit that I have seen." How ironic that I recycled the name of a previous blog post, yet added "Redux," Like Apocalypse Now, Redux. How very appropriate.

A Disclaimer...

Oh, one more thing. At no time, or in no way, is this an indictment against any teacher. Past, present, or future.


Back on July 15, I wrote about the Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. Today, we go one step further and explore how this will look in practice, and idiocy.

In the Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School a student that throws chairs and puts other students in danger will be subject to a first Responder. Yes, that R should be capitalized, for these Responders will be a regular person, a regular Joe or Josephine that will be ensconced within the school culture, only known amongst and to themselves.

Each Responder will be on duty, not doing their job, but waiting, waiting for the call to go out. A red square, a red siren, the Bat Signal will beckon them that there is a job to do, a child who is having bad emotional response. When the call comes, they will scurry with all their might, their last breath to the scene of the student throwing a chair, throwing pencils, throwing a tantrum, or punching a teacher and will be soothed, and restrained and sent to that most wonderful place on earth, Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place.

Once there, the student will be plied with happy talk and possibly milk and cookies. Maybe a blankey, or a binky, and a woobie. But don't think for a moment that there won't be consequences to the adverse and negative behavior.

There will be an art center where the student will be able to finger paint his or her feelings away. A big comfy pillow chair will probably not be out of the question to soothe those feelings of destruction as the child in the class that was hit with the chair  and is bleeding profusely from the head. In fact, the hell with the bleeding kid, the kid who threw the chair is the one who must be comforted.

But a look down the road at The Crack Team's prognostications reveal that soon this Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place will be bursting at the seems due to the fact that by the end of October, students will get the fact that bad behavior not only reaps rewards, but reaps not having to be in class. That will be the genius in it, the its ultimate failing.

Screw Lee Canter, screw what he knows, what he has taught. There is always a liberal  someone who thinks they know better, that it falls upon that person to reinvent the wheel.

I know of a school in NYC, can't say where, but the elementary school is going ultra liberal in its response to discipline issue that is ruining it. The school will be officially known as the Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. What does this mean? The Crack Team here at SBSB was able to obtain a copy of the FAQ that put answered questions staff members might ask of the new system of discipline. This FAQ was sent out to staff members and we here at SBSB are more than happy to publish the FAQ.
 
A student in my class repeatedly disrupts the learning process. Should I call that student's parents?

NO! Under no circumstances is a teacher on their own ever to call a student's parents. Doing this might upset the child. We want our students to be able to reflect upon their own, come to their own conclusion on why disrupting the class might be disturbing to others.

A student just kicked me in my nuts. How should I respond?

First, please be professional and do not use the word nuts. Please use testicle(s). If this were to happen to a male teacher do not raise your voice or let the student know you are seeing stars and feeling pain. In a calm soothing voice look the student in the eye and say, "Ouch, my testicle(s) hurt(s). I know you did not mean to kick me there, but I understand that you are in crisis. I shall put a soothing balm and/or icepack on my testicle(s)."

A student just ran down the hall way punching and biting students. This student also tore down student's work from the bulletin boards, how should this student be disciplined?


This is very simple. Show that you really mean business by allowing the student to play games on the computer all day. This will also show that you are using the technology properly.

According the the NYC DOE Discipline Code there are many level 4 and 5 infractions. Surely, this must put the school in a positive light, what can be done to reduce such infractions?

Very simple. Stop reporting level 4 and 5 infractions. This is not a cover up. Just hiding one's head in the sand and hoping no one will notice.

A student has just thrown chair in the classroom endagering other students safety. What is the best way to deal with this?

Allow him to do an art project. Or better yet, get him a Bobo Doll. This child feels the need to express themselves and what better way to avoid a problem than to just add to the problem.

Where have these fascinating ideas been formulated?

At a teacher's college. 


How does one remove a disruptive student?

Only student's that are not disruptive to the pedagogues will be removed. Though, once removed, there will be no paper trail, no student removal forms filled out and no reporting. 

A student has thrown 3 major fits in the day thus far. Each fit has put students and staff in danger. What can be done?


Basically, nothing negative. But positive, we can give the child candy, let him have extra gym, or just let the student have the run of the school.

Why are we not to call parents? 

Phone calls might upset parents. Also, there needs to be control of teachers. 

Have any of these liberal discipline methods ever been effective?

No, but it is just theory. And since it is theory and someone thought of these liberal discipline methods, it must be right.

If these liberal discipline methods do not work, who is to blame?

The teachers of course. Not the ones who came up with these methods. Never, never, never.

How will we know if these methods are not working? Will there be some sort of sign, signal?


Simple. Once you lose control of your classroom and the school is out of control, both by October 16 at 1:45 PM, all hell has broken lose and you can kiss any semblance of learning good bye.

So there you have it. The FAQ from the new Happy Good Time Emotion Response Place and School. Critical Mass come February.