By Mark Hemingway
Washington Examiner
June 8, 2010
A mother in New Jersey got a rude surprise from her child recently:
I am looking for your opinions and insights based upon a very distressing situation my youngest daughter brought to my attention last week involving a school fundraiser.If this seems shocking, it shouldn’t. Michael Graham points out this isn’t exactly a new phenomenon:
As both she and the letter she handed me stated, my daughter was to accomplish chores around the house with the goal of being paid by me for those chores the sum of $20. She would then have to hand the full $20 over to the school to make up for the shortfall in their overall budget which, ultimately, disallowed the kids to go on yet another class trip. Participation was mandatory according to what my daughter told me and the letter seemingly conveyed (however, on a later phone call, my daughter’s teacher altered the word “mandatory” to be “suggested” despite all evidence to the contrary).
The extent in which the teacher tried to convince me that this fundraiser and the lesson held within was in the best interest of the children was rather sickening especially as paying my children to undertake family chores goes against all that I have ever taught them.
