I am the proud single mother of a wonderful 11yr old boy. We all know that it is possible for a single mom to raise a child who is very patriotic.
I can't even begin to cover the many topics my son and I have discussed as a result of this election. I do know as a result of those conversations he now has a much better understanding of our political process and even many of the struggles this nation has faced over the years.
Follow me below the break to discover why I need your help.
Tonight was open house at my son's school. We dashed from class to class and I had the opportunity to meet his teachers and learn a bit more about the expectations for each subject.
I ran into a bit of a problem when we reached his 6th period class. 6th period is the last class of the day. My son is an office helper during this time. Instead of meeting a 'teacher' I met a couple of guidance counselors and various other office staff who were happy to tell me what a great job he is doing in helping out.
One of his responsibilities in this period is to take care of the school flag. Unfortunately the school has recently had to purchase a new flag as the old one was damaged by the winds of Tropical Storm Fay.
One of the ladies sat down to speak with me and began to tell me that she was planning a flag retirement as a result of speaking with my son. My son participated in a similar event while at camp earlier this year and made a few suggestions on how to properly retire a flag.
They are planning to burn the damaged flag. My son keeps correcting me and saying that they are not going to burn the flag but rather retire it.
I live in a state where we have a huge number of Republicans. My son is a vocal Barack Obama supporting 11yr old. He often comes home with stories of students who tell him he is supporting the antichrist or who inform him that Barack will only be a good president for black people.
This isn't a result of me pushing my political views on my son but rather the result of having students share their choice for president in mock elections held in their classrooms.
I am a little bit concerned about this retirement ceremony. My son is young and the person at the school who supports this idea seems to be getting her information regarding the process from my son.
I've researched this online and it is quite a complex process when done according to all the rules.
Can anyone help me design an appropriate process for a middle school and a small group of 6th - 8th grade students? I want to ensure that this is done respectfully. I'm concerned that there could be misunderstanding or even possibly those who would criticize their actions without realizing the true intent.
I'm proud of the fact that my son is aware of the importance of our flag and I'd like to do a good job of supporting his efforts to retire her respectfully.
I don't have any idea how this will go over with other school policies such as general fire codes, etc. I'm a bit concerned that the lady in the office mentioned using lighter fluid. (Yes, I'm in the south.)
Maybe I need the help of a few teachers or administrators as well.
I know I'm at the right place to get good answers and all suggestions by those familiar with this process will be greatly appreciated.