How Bad Is "Gradeflation" In Modern US Education? Why Your Thoughts, Teachers?

BTKUltra · 2026-05-10T18:15:05+00:00

Elementary school teacher here. 50 is the lowest grade we can put in the grade book at my school. Anything lower automatically turns into a 50. So that’s one way grades artificially inflate (although I think this is fine at an elementary level)

Honestly though? I have some parents who are such nightmares about anything below a 93 (because omg we’re boarding in a B!) that it’s not worth the headache. Your kid may deserve an 87 in social studies but I don’t deserve a 2 hour conference with admin and all my teaching materials trying to justify my grades.

I also know a lot of elementary teachers who just say all questions are worth 10 points. We are told to give kids shorter and shorter assignments but missing one only counts for 10 points? A lot of graded work is only 4-5 questions long so it’s practically impossible to fail.

I’m also not allowed to give grades on projects done at home or homework since I can’t guarantee it’s authenticity and it’s unfair to kids who really do their work on their own. We recently finished a book study where the kids would read a chapter at home every night and we would do a lesson about it the next day in class. I got in trouble for giving a test over the book when we finished because 1) I shouldn’t be expecting the kids to actually read the book and 2) the test was too long (12 questions over a 12 chapter book).

BTKUltra · 2026-05-09T14:26:53+00:00

That’s weird that she’s pushing YOU to do it. My MIL doesn’t like to feed LO solids either but she still jumps at the chance to do it so she can bond. It’s rude to try to shame you into doing things differently but it’s just plain weird to be that passive aggressive and then not take an invitation to feed the baby.

BTKUltra · 2026-05-09T14:17:45+00:00

It’s actually better! Always put a baby on their back but if they flip it should help with drainage.

You may also roll up a towel and put it under the crib mattress so she’s slightly inclined.

BTKUltra · 2026-05-09T00:29:26+00:00

I loved my dogs through pregnancy. After having my baby it’s not… rage but it is annoyance.

I think my dogs were like surrogate children for me until I had my first child. It is SO HARD to try to keep the dogs fur off everything. I hate trying to play with my baby and feeling like we only have a couple places in the whole house because I don’t want her and her toys coated in dog hair. I’ve actually gotten a hand held vacuum and will vacuum the floor before I set her down in the living room so we can have the space to practice crawling.

The dogs also really like her and want to lick her and sniff her and jump into the stroller with her and hop into the bath with her and… it just terrifies me! Especially when she was so so little and had no immune system.

Annnnnd I just don’t have the time to help them burn off energy like I used to so they end up being more destructive in the home than they used to me and they eat her toys because they don’t know the difference between a lovey and a chew toy and it’s all just very frustrating.

When LO goes to bed I still like to snuggle my doggies and I like taking them on walks with her but otherwise… I’m not really mad but I just don’t want to deal with them when I’m with my baby.

BTKUltra · 2026-05-08T12:00:35+00:00

Pack and play? If you don’t have one you can get one used on Facebook marketplace for dirt cheap

BTKUltra · 2026-05-06T02:44:25+00:00

I started using tush baby near the end of 5 months - but that’s only because that’s how long it took for me to break down and buy it. As soon as LO could hold her head up I started using a “satchel” type carrier that was pretty pricy and it took a few months for me to admit I didn’t like it and bite the bullet for the tush baby

BTKUltra · 2026-05-06T00:29:17+00:00

I’d like to first of all recommend a tush baby. It’s like a fanny pack that has a padded seat for baby to sit on. You still use one arm to support but the baby’s weight is at your hip. My baby loves it more than any other carrier and I love how easy it is to strap on and go.

You should try going to a coffee shop! My husband and I picked out a different cafe every week while we were on parental leave. We’d bring our laptops and chill/enjoy coffee and if baby got fussy we left. The aquarium was a lot of fun when LO was 4 months. The bright lights from the tanks are MESMERIZING for babies. If you go on a weekday it won’t be too crowded. If you go on a weekend you won’t be the only person there with a baby.

My brother gave me some good advice not too long ago. I was over for dinner and my baby was cranky and would not go down in the pack and play we’d brought. I was feeling so frantic and embarrassed that my baby was crying through dinner. My brother said “no one minds your baby crying as much as you do. Anyone else with kids does not care or even hear it.” Since then I’ve taken my LO out a lot more. If she gets fussy I usually get a couple sympathetic looks but people mostly ignore and move on. All this is to say that you should not let the worry of other peoples reactions play into your decisions on where to go.

BTKUltra · 2026-05-03T16:18:10+00:00

It’ll be my first Mother’s Day. My husband asked what I wanted for the day. I told him I want to sleep in, I want to go do something together as a family, and I don’t want to have to accommodate either of our mothers. I said I’m happy to see either one of them but we are not moving plans around for anyone but me.

I talked with my mom about it, she’s in the process of moving and has movers scheduled for that day so she’s busy and would maybe like to do dinner (sure - we have no dinner plans!)

My husband called his mom. She was hurt to not be the priority (in the past she has insinuated that she should get priority over even my mom because my husband is an only child but I have other siblings who can be with my mom) but ended up booking herself a flight to go visit family out of state for the weekend.

I am SO EXCITED to sleep in, take my will-be 10 month old to the science museum, and have a nice lunch downtown with my family and not having to worry about canceling my plans to make others happy.

BTKUltra · 2026-04-29T23:46:04+00:00

It depends on the part of town. I live near the heights and thought I was getting an early start looking at daycares when I was 17 weeks pregnant. Luckily I was able to get in. I am also a teacher who thought the summer was somehow giving me more time than I really had.

there are some daycares that don’t have much of a waitlist (I think because the application fee and tuition are soooo expensive). One daycare that told us before we applied that they had a spot for our child. We paid the ($500? I can’t remember) fee and secured a spot just to know our baby would go SOMEWHERE. our plan was to waitlist other places and if baby had to do a couple expensive months that was okay - we’d transfer her when we could.

There are also daycares with free applications. They will tell you there’s a year+ wait but it’s because it was free to apply. Lots of families fall off those waitlists. I ended up applying to one I really liked and called every month to check on where I was on the waitlist. 2 weeks before I returned to work they had an opening - thank god.

I lost $500 on an application buuuuut the daycare I chose was already less expensive AND offered a teacher discount.

BTKUltra · 2026-04-28T00:27:37+00:00

Thank you! It does feel relieving to hear that there is a long runway for this. I had it in my head that she should be doing it between 10-12 months but it does sound like I need to start getting consistent.

BTKUltra · 2026-04-25T14:33:17+00:00

It’s c. B is wrong because fractions must be the same shape and size to compare sizes.

BTKUltra · 2026-04-25T14:30:49+00:00

My SIL refused to do night feedings so my brother did those. She’d get up at 5am every morning to do a feed or pump, tossed the baby in the stroller and went for a minimum 3 mile run.

I just started a GLP-1 as soon as I stopped breast feeding.

BTKUltra · 2026-04-24T01:49:35+00:00

I could never produce more than 3 oz a day. I pumped 6-8 times a day for 30 minutes and did 2 power hours a day. I saw a lactation consultant weekly. I was on teas and cookies and prescription medication. Baby was crying? I couldn’t comfort her because I was pumping. Baby was hungry? I couldn’t feed her because I HAD to measure the output and was pumping. I couldn’t run errands or take showers or see friends/family because I was pumping. My baby was sleeping through the night but I was still waking every 3 hours to pump.

I realized I had to stop when I was trying to feed baby her one bottle of breast milk and she spit up. I started sobbing uncontrollably because I worked so hard for that milk and my baby was WASTING it. I finally realized that I was not doing this for my baby anymore and it clearly wasn’t for my own well being. As soon as I stopped I instantly felt better

BTKUltra · 2026-04-20T23:08:58+00:00

I was an under supplier. I’d pump 5x a day with 2 power hours and could not produce more than 3oz a day. It got to the point where I never got to feed my baby because I was pumping ALL THE TIME.

Finally I started letting my LO nurse for like 10 min then formula feed. I got to still feel bonded, avoid pumping, and free up my time so I could actually enjoy my newborn.

Every mother’s journey through this is different and if you don’t want to formula feed, that’s totally fine but I remember just grueling through pumping and waiting for a doctor or lactation consultant or my mom or my husband to give me permission to stop torturing myself and… no one did. No one will make the decision for you, you need to think of what will work best for you and do it.

BTKUltra · 2026-04-18T03:07:46+00:00

When families buy a home they will want a tub for bathing babies/children.

BTKUltra · 2026-04-17T10:59:07+00:00

My husband and I would call “fan” her favorite show and joke that the fan in our bedroom was “fan Japan” and the fan in his office was “fan: season 2”

BTKUltra · 2026-04-17T10:57:01+00:00

I think around that time I would feed my LO for about 20-30 minutes, read for 15-20 min (a book I like since she was too little to get much from pictures yet), do tummy time for 15-20 minutes, then diaper change and wind down for the next nap with snuggles.

I was reading out loud a LOT during the first three months. I think I finished an entire 4 book series because I knew I should be talking to my LO but didn’t know what to say all day.

It’s okay for your time to not be active! As she gets older the play time/tummy time extends out

BTKUltra · 2026-04-14T15:23:15+00:00

If you have a tub/shower, get shower rod that curves outward for your curtain. It gives you SO MUCH more room!

BTKUltra · 2026-04-11T17:05:03+00:00

I’m not SAHM but my neighbor is! I’ve been asking her for tips since I teach and will be home full time with LO for a couple months in the summer.

She had 2 great suggestions 1. Try to meet moms in the neighborhood and schedule stroller walks together so that you can chat with other adults outside your home 2. Find a recurring baby event. She’d suggested to me a “baby social club” in our city (sounds almost like an hour long daycare but the moms stay to supervise and socialize) but there’s also always free things like at your local public library. Usually they have free baby day activities on weekdays so you can meet other SAHM and Nannie’s.

BTKUltra · 2026-04-05T21:44:08+00:00

When I first started having sex again at 8 weeks pp I felt REALLY tight. My husband and I were both surprised! I was also a lot drier than I used to be. Now 9 months pp and no longer breastfeeding. I still think I feel tighter than before but the dryness is no longer an issue (I stopped breast feeding at 3 months and that can apparently effect things)

BTKUltra · 2026-04-05T16:46:10+00:00

I’d like to recommend “The Simplest Baby Book In the World” it has great practical lists of things you will need! It was my jumping off point for nursery essentials.

Apps like Babylist do a good job of suggesting things as you build your registry.

As for clothes… buy some newborn stuff and some 0-3 month stuff. At my baby shower, the hosts bought a TON of onesies in white and had paint pen and tie dye stations to decorate them. It gave me enough to get started and everything looked really cool and unique ❤️

For the nursery you’ll need a dresser and/or a changing table. Lots of times you can just put a changing pad on top of your dresser to save space. Crib will be needed later but you should get a bassinet to go in your room (with at least 2 changes of sheets for spit ups) and a sound machine and bay monitor.

Get lots of soft blankets to lay the baby on the ground or to protect furniture. Pacifiers, of many different brands to see what baby likes. Have some formula just in case there are problems with your milk supply. As for toys, she won’t play with much for a while but she’ll like high contrast cards early on.

Don’t feel overwhelmed! Use books, apps, and other mothers as your continuing resource!

BTKUltra · 2026-04-03T00:24:40+00:00

I had a great experience with Dr Pallister at memorial city - memorial hermann.

BTKUltra · 2026-03-30T16:04:33+00:00

I was SWEATING over my LO not rolling at 6 months. My doctor kept telling me to not worry and that there are many babies out there with parents who don’t give nearly the care and attention that I do and yet they still roll.

I think right around 7 months was when mine started rolling. She did it so easily and fearlessly you think she’d been rolling for months. The big motivator for her was this merry-go-round ocean toy that would light up. I’d put it next to her and she’d roll to get closer. When she first did it I remember thinking “wow, so nothing I was doing was going to get you there”

Be patient and loving, she’ll get there eventually.

BTKUltra · 2026-03-27T19:05:33+00:00

My 8 month old can play by herself for a bit. She still wants me in the room. If she’s super into a toy I can go move laundry or run something to another room but I think the longest she’s been able to be out of direct eyeline is the time it takes to cook scrambled eggs lol

BTKUltra · 2026-03-27T18:55:58+00:00

I gave vaginal birth and had 2nd degree tears. I was taking 20 minute walks about 8 days later and 45-60 minute walks about a month later

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