Angie Sullivan teaches kindergarten in Nevada. She writes often about the harm done to 5-year-olds by developmentally inappropriate demands inspired by Common Core.

State legislators don’t think twice about piling on impossible demands. Apparently none of them have children, none was ever a teacher. They think if you raise a standard, no matter how out of reach, it will be met. The Legislature might start with themselves: they should take high school graduation tests and publish their scores. They should run a four-minute mile, in public. Why not?

Angie Sullivan writes:

https://m.facebook.com/KTVN2/posts/808196485870280

John Eppolito on News 3 – What’s Your Point

Rory Reid and Amy Tarkanian:

As a school teacher and a liberal Democrat – I also oppose common core. I have joined John Eppolito’s group.

I have to teach common core because I am mandated. And I do my Kindergarten job as best I can . . . but common core is crazy.

For Example: There are no writing standards in common core for Kindergarten. So they pushed down third grade standards to teach in Kindergarten. My writing standard for my at-risk 5 year olds is . . . write a fact and opinion paper. Yep – one standard, write a paper. There is not one good kindergarten teacher out there that thinks THAT should be the standard for five year olds who need to learn to hold a pencil and write their name first.

As a primary teacher, I also speak out against common core because it is not developmentally appropriate. Obviously, no one was involved from the Early Childhood Community in writing these standards.

Across the nation Kindergarten Teachers are protesting against common core. Something is very wrong when you push down standards for second and third grade and they end up in a Kindergarten classroom.

National Early Childhood Experts have spoken out:

Click to access joint_statement_on_core_standards.pdf

When I have tried to speak to Nevada Democratic legislators about my concerns – I was told I was annoying. I don’t give them anything to work with? My opinion is not valued.

Noted.

And it is not stopping me from speaking out for my kids.

The support my lawmakers profess for common core – renamed Nevada Academic Standards – is blind to the reality in the classroom. Teaching almost everyone far above the place they are able to learn – at their frustrational level – does not work. And that strategy is in direct conflict with best teaching practice which would demand teaching at instructional level.

We have to implement common core because everyone else is doing this? Have you followed the national trend closely? Common Core is dying.

http://unitedoptout.com

http://dianeravitch.net

When the Nevada Standards became political and mandated by legislators . . . and you took standards out of the hands of teachers, the education experts — what did you think was going to happen?

How do I change a bad standard in Nevada now?

I’m also a mandatory reporter. My at-risk students are being harmed. So I report – is anyone listening?

The testing connected with these standards is ridiculous and useless. And this is what we spend our limited funds on now? Millions of dollars spent to test and fail – rather than to support and instruct students.

And yes – common core and testing are a package deal . . . and both do affect curriculum – and it’s a lie to state otherwise
.

And all of the above leads me to fully believe this is about money and not about kids.

http://m.thenation.com/article/181762-venture-capitalists-are-poised-disrupt-everything-about-education-market

I am convinced that there has been a huge national campaign to invalidate educators and years of real education research — so that corporations can make a profit implementing junk science like common core.

Someone is making millions and billions — it is not helping my Nevada students.

Angie

Kindergarten Teacher

Fortunately, I am on Angie Sullivan’s email list, which has scores of recipients. Most seem to be teachers, legislators, and journalists in Nevada. Angie keeps all of us up-to-date with education events in Nevada. We learned first from Angie that the public schools in Nevada are poorly funded. In fact, the Education Law Center says that Nevada has one of the most inequitable funding formulas in the nation. Angie also let me know about the Governor and Legislature’s grant of $1.3 billion in tax incentives to Tesla to build a battery factory in Nevada. And now she reports on an effort to portray Nevada as the one place in the nation where there is no controversy about the Common Core. Angie takes issue with that claim. She is a teacher.

Here is what a reformer says about common core in Nevada.

Here is what a Nevadan says about common core.

Angie Sullivan comments:

“Echo Chambers are dangerous things unless you earn money making them. I commented on the first article but the comments disappeared.

“Ask a teacher in a safe place what they really think – if you can handle the truth.”