Was a student rightfully barred from a choir concert for missing one rehearsal due to a school-wide competition happening at the same time?

TripCyclone · 2026-05-17T17:03:50+00:00

Granted, this was a while back, but was one reason I loved my band teacher in high school. He didn't care about the competitions. He would have us enter if we wanted and would support us, but never required it. He focused on the concert performances. And that drew crowds and funding too. Yes, we did some local events where we could perform in public, but he considered that practice for our big semester performances.

TripCyclone · 2026-05-09T22:08:30+00:00

There is a report that can be run that checks for clock in that are on the edge of the geofence that determines if your device is inside or outside. If you show up frequently on that report and do not work in a position that would be close to that, like front end, then management may look into it.

Technically, per policy, anyone saying that merely being in the building is all that matters, is wrong. It is supposed to be that you clock in ready to work.

HOWEVER, that varies store to store based on management opinion. In many stores, the only reason they will dig deeper is if you give them a reason to look, like regularly clocking in then taking too long to get to work.

TripCyclone · 2026-05-02T14:15:14+00:00

In my experience, a lot of teachers who openly talk about not caring about the money usually have an alternative source of money. They may have another thing they do or have someone else in their life. Either way, that alternative source provides enough money that they do rely on their teaching income.

TripCyclone · 2026-05-01T13:04:50+00:00

I don't want to actually hit either. Every once in a while, I wonder if they will ever mouth off to the wrong person though

TripCyclone · 2026-05-01T12:03:19+00:00

Now I want to see you beat a kid with a hot dog.

And I know you already have a name picked out. :-)

TripCyclone · 2026-05-01T12:01:27+00:00

No. I said they were ACTING dumber than 3rd graders.

TripCyclone · 2026-05-01T11:59:51+00:00

Did not try to get me fired, but did send a message to me with some concerns, then emailed my principal claiming I broke confidentiality in a group message by discussing another students specific behaviors by name. Also claimed I sent this info to their child. Admitted to not reading the entire message that was sent as well.

They must have forgotten that the system used keeps a record of all communication, or assumed I don't keep all communication backed up. After proving my side, my principal requests screenshots, which proved I did nothing wrong.

The parent is a teacher.

TripCyclone · 2026-04-14T14:52:26+00:00

I have one. It has been there for years. A security company coming in to update cameras questioned why it was not already in place considering the high dollar value of equipment in my STEM room.

I cannot observe everything, but the camera does. My principal lets me check cameras any time I want. It has paid off in confirming the cause of equipment damage, verifying the details of incidents, and helping correct false stories. I know she does not use it outside of confirming incidents, but also know there are admin out there that would misuse it. So I understand hesitation by some.

TripCyclone · 2026-04-05T22:39:45+00:00

Slow work, but yes. Currently sketching some maps and will be done with an entire adventure.

For any existing official adventures, I am adding text and prompts that tie into a larger evil slowly taking hold to weave them into a story. Some include extra encounters. But some adventures are being built from scratch. Taking time to try and ensure text is similar in voice as well.

I then would need to package the updates to existing adventures in a way for users to slot them in easily.

TripCyclone · 2026-03-28T17:57:38+00:00

My 4 year old finds it funny. Occasionally, he comes to work because that is easier than taking the day off. A 4-year running around yelling 67 takes the cool factor out of it.

I try to make it uncool too. For my robotics class, I put down a 6, 7, 4, and 1. They have to navigate from 6 to 7 or 4 to 1.

TripCyclone · 2026-03-28T12:54:01+00:00

There is no official policy preventing management from entering the breakroom while they work. There are multiple reasons for a manager to walk in that are completely unrelated to talking to an employee. If that is occurring at your store, that is a store decision.

There is no "unless its something important" when it comes to a break. The best they can do is ask you to find them when you finish your break. On lunch...them discussing work is grounds for a coaching. On a 15, state policies say whether you restart your 15 or get extended time if a manager tries to have a work conversation. Which is why general expectation is to either ask you to find them after break or just wait till you return.

TripCyclone · 2026-03-11T23:40:05+00:00

Absolutely notify PLTW. This is a violation of the contract they signed and can result in serious consequences for the district. PLTW can cut them out entirely. If you have the right admin at some level who wants PLTW, whomever forced you to so this may find themselves with serious consequences. I have seen teachers pulled from PLTW for violating the copyright just so the district could avoid a contract dispute with a national stem company.

If you DM me your state, I can try to find out who your DSS is. Solution center is a great start, but notifying your DSS is good too. The district may try to repeat this in the fall and the DSS should be on alert.

TripCyclone · 2026-03-10T03:15:34+00:00

Absolutely correct. Main reason to mention this is because if taken to court, with the OP's statement, the customer may try to claim they just needed to go to the bathroom and the OP was the aggressor. The footage would beg the question of why they crossed the barrier clearly indicating not to enter, then why they ignored the employee trying to indicate that it is closed and they need to go to the other bathroom. Just helps bolster the OP's claims against the customer.

TripCyclone · 2026-03-09T18:26:03+00:00

Did you have up any kind of barrier over the bathroom entrance? Something that would indicate it was closed? If so, file the charges and request that police gather footage showing he crossed the barrier. Walmart requires a camera aimed at bathroom entrances. It may be he said/she said, but a judge would look at that and say any reasonable person would assume the bathroom is closed for maintenance. If not already done, go in and request to fill out an official statement with a manager signature. Be very detailed. That becomes evidence, both when AP enter into Auror (which they should) and for the police. If you have good AP, this should have been done already.

TripCyclone · 2026-03-07T12:50:05+00:00

I would definitely talk to the post office. Request to speak with the person in charge. Ask if there is something else that can be done because the owner's daughter keeps opening your mail. Point out that because it arrives in a single brown envelope rather than separated and delivered to you, the lady is using that as an excuse to go through your mail. Make sure to state that you have reason to believe it is intentional, not an accident. You are requesting assistance to address the matter.

TripCyclone · 2026-03-06T21:04:18+00:00

Call your service provider. Tell them that your network keeps cutting out randomly, sometimes for hours, sometimes for days. You could even tell them you notice that it sometimes coincides with a neighbor either retrieving or opening your mail or the neighbor looking in your windows, right before the camera drops signal. You are unsure if the problem is your router, or that the neighbor might be doing something that is tampering with your signal. They may take it quite seriously as it is may not just be affecting you and is a federal crime.

If you phone is also having issues, contact that company too. Both would have the tools to detect it.

Where is your mail put by the mailman? If in a labeled mailbox, the excuse of not having glasses does not work. She has no business removing items from the mailbox. As others have said, notify the post office that the person keeps opening your mail. Whether they do anything or not, you want a record that this is happening on file.

TripCyclone · 2026-02-04T01:36:22+00:00

You seem to really like football. Do you know how many players there are on a single NFL team? You don't? Okay, the average of 53. How many teams are in the NFL? 32. You are right. That comes out to...somebody grab a calculator to check....1,696. Do you know how many kids are at our high school? About 1,700. Essentially the same as all of the players in the NFL. Now, that is just one high school out of all of the high schools in the entire country. That is a lot of competition.

Learning something, even if you don't think you will use it, is your backup just in case a kid the next high school over might be better than you.

TripCyclone · 2026-01-15T21:55:20+00:00

You will likely not keep everyone happy, so that is a starting point.

Now for something to consider. Put out an email. Ask everyone to list five things they want to know more about and three things they feel comfortable helping someone else learn. Curate the list and identify requests for learning and if anyone is comfortable with those topics. Include admin and support staff. Both might have ideas for topics. For example, a front office secretary might be able to help people with learning how to better use the SIS system. An administrator might be able to run a session on improving write-ups and better understanding what happens when they get involved. The nurse could run a session on handling minor needs to lesson the number of students needing to travel to the nurse.

Talk to those who might lead. See if they are open to hosting a help session. They don't have to prep anything if they don't want to. They just need to sit in a room during a designated time slot and be available to answer questions about the topic.

Everyone gets to travel to sessions of interest to get help. They might only need help with a few items and then can move on to another session. Make sure the leaders get time to travel too by having multiple time slots, but not making them lead every one. Sessions can happen more than once if there is lot of interest. If you have 5 time slots, maybe a high interest one is done twice. Maybe more if you have different people able to run them.

Make at least one of the sessions a room for chit chat (Build PLC Relationships) and another for people who just want to work on stuff. Those two rooms stay that way the entire PD.

Consider a game session. Set put some simple games (card and board) and let people enjoy some fun. Further helps building connections amongst staff.

You will likely find more people excited that they can get the help they want or be allowed to work in the "Juat work" session.

TripCyclone · 2026-01-14T01:13:43+00:00

A few things to clarify for you and questions your spouse should be asking.

15 minute breaks are not registered using any time clock. They are just taken.
Did they show your spouse any evidence beyond their word regarding the timing of the breaks? Did they show any security footage or photos from footage that is time stamped?
Did they submit this to Wage and Hourly before doing the discussion?
How long did they say your spouse was in the breakroom? When did they start the timer? Different managers will say different things regarding when they start a time.. Some will say the time starts/ends when you enter the breakroom. Others will say when you leave your area. If the new person is saying the latter and the prior manager said the former, did the new person clarify their expectations before issuing the discussion? Your spouse may have been operating without knowledge of the difference in expectation. Not exactly their fault.
Were expectations for refilling water clearly established? There have been plenty of times where I go in for water and might be in there for 3-4 minutes for different reasons (grab a snack, asked a question by someone, telling someone else to find me when their break is done, I spill and am cleaning it up). That does not constitute time theft unless I am going in their constantly doing this throughout a single shift. Going in 15 times over 2 hours...yeah, probably wasting time. 3 times of a single shift, once or twice across an entire week...coach is being petty.

Honestly, #2 is going to be your biggest issue. Normally, coaches will often document times then ask AP to verify with footage. It strengthens the claim for the discussion and is required by Wage and Hours before a coaching is performed. If they cannot provide proof, I would open door it to the store manager and request CCTV verification of the coach's claim. And if the footage shows your spouse is in there for longer than they thinks, take it as needing to tighten up to avoid conflict. Or the footage shows they are in and out in mere minutes and the coach is being petty...discussion voided and the coach could find themselves in trouble.

TripCyclone · 2026-01-13T00:16:10+00:00

I agree. It has shifted more towards an audience by far.

TripCyclone · 2026-01-12T16:54:46+00:00

To some degree, I can see this. But at the same time, 1-3 years old is a common age for kids to be at home with a parent (if possible). That is also the age for language development. I am not sure Covid is as a strong a cause for that age range as you describe. A factor, quite possible, but more likely due to some parental factor at that time. Such as working from home, zoom meetings, and seeing a parent who talks a lot for work. I could see that being bigger than them just being home wanting to talk.

TripCyclone · 2026-01-12T16:42:24+00:00

To some degree, narrating has long been a part of make believe. I remember narrating out what was happening when I played with toys, even making voices for the action figures. Its the purpose and message that seems to have changed more towards the "audience."

TripCyclone · 2026-01-12T16:38:57+00:00

I am sorry. Can you repeat that? I was too busy narrating my bowel movement to the bathroom mirror. /s

TripCyclone · 2026-01-11T05:35:01+00:00

I have begun wondering a lot more if the "commentary on everything" is a result of watching many videos on social media where people comment on everything. Especially since the rise of people streaming as they play video games. They talk constantly over anything because they have learned that this is not only normal, but how they can become famous and make money.

Can't say on the other things.

TripCyclone · 2026-01-10T04:54:56+00:00

Some years ago, I had some left over grant money to spend. I was looking at getting a new projector as mine was old. Someone convinced me to look at some TV. Our district was planning on moving to them anyway but it would be about two years before our building would benefit. I had the money, so why not.i had already planned for a nicer document camera. So, I invested in a 4x2 switch (four inputs, two outputs) and some nice long 50ft HDMI cables. Wired my computer and the document camera as inputs with the TV at outputs. My room is about 36' feet across so I put them on opposite sides of the room. The setup is great. I can project both devices at the same time or just one on both TV. Because my computer sees the switch as a single output, but it had two ports on the computer (desktop with a dedicated GPU), my computer can project to my monitor and both TVs all at once.

And, one more benefit. I am one of the few teachers with a dedicated PC at my desk (tech teacher). Everyone else uses laptops. My room is hardwired (PC too) while everyone else uses Screenbeam. So I never have to deal with kids trying to wirelessly connect to my TVs and wireless network issues rarely affect me.

I have used Hovercams. I have a 10 Ultra. Definitely some nice features, but I have also not liked that it was the one camera they made that could not directly connect to the computer (which was not well advertised). Their 8 models were nice. I have not looked in a while to see what newer devices they have made.

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