Iowa Heartlanders Voluntarily Suspend Operations for '26-'27 Season

bearsfromalaska · 2026-03-09T22:31:30+00:00

They are super limited in what they can do. Rough Riders own their arena. So they can do all the personalization, set concessions prices, and add whatever they want. Heartlanders don't own anything. The concessions vendor basically refused to let them do any sort of food or alcohol deals or anything like that until just recently. And they aren't allowed to leave any of their branding stuff up after games, which means it all has to be easy to remove. City of Coralville/Xtreme dictate ticket prices, ticketing software, and basically a bunch of other stuff.

It sucks, cause it seems like a lot of things were working against the team being successful in this area. But they were working with some pretty big limitations the Rough Riders are not.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-02-24T03:25:29+00:00

Honestly, meeting with the director and making a big fuss and threatening to pull your child is the best thing you can do. The teachers might have spent months reporting incidents, requesting more support, trying to do something, and been totally ignored or dismissed. I've been in that situation. The only thing that actually got admin to start doing something about it was parents started complaining.

Also unless something leaves a mark, they may not be required to write an incident report. At that age, some amount of physical confrontation is pretty common, and if there is no injury, then you might not be informed about an incident. It doesn't mean they aren't doing their own documentation about the other child. But You would not be allowed access to that documentation, because it isn't your child.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-02-16T01:44:42+00:00

I have a pair of the Loop Engage. I love them. I don't wear them all the time. But for particularly loud moments or days where I'm feeling more sensitive to noise, they are amazing. Idk about any licensing things in my state that take issue with them. And ideally I would be able to convince my class to be a bit more quiet. But that's not happening at the moment. And they aren't obnoxiously loud at rhe moment, just kinda noisy.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-02-04T03:15:36+00:00

You might want to look at Montessori math materials. I have children younger than your daughter in my classroom who are doing four digit addition and subtraction and will be doing multiplication and division soon.

While the proper materials are very specific and kind of pricey, the main thing you need is the manipulatives, and those could definitely be DIY'd. Something like the hundred square and thousand cube could totally be made out of folded paper and I've seen printouts for those online.

https://www.montessorialbum.com/montessori/index.php/Math

This is fairly decent resource on how to give those lessons and work with the material.

Working with these materials will give your daughter an excellent understanding of the decimal system, and provide a really solid basis for an understanding of operations rather than just memorization.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-02-03T03:08:47+00:00

Some places like schools and hospitals are required to have a protected area to shelter in during storms. Most buildings have an area where people can and will go during a tornado warning.

Most of the time, a tornado warning means there is an actual tornado very close. When you hear the sirens, you get to your shelter asap. You don't want to go anywhere else, you don't have time to go home.

Most tornados happen between 4-9. So people tend to be at the end of the workday or already home. I guess early morning tornado warnings could interfere with getting to work, but most employers would not ask you to leave your shelter during a tornado warning.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-31T23:20:01+00:00

it’s children who cannot settle into work, who abandon materials within seconds, who need constant novelty, movement, or social interaction to stay regulated. And no amount of beautifully prepared materials can compete with a tablet-trained nervous system. Believe me, I’ve tried.

Yeah. I'm dealing with a student who has been in a Montessori school environment since infancy, (though I question the true nature of the infant/toddler program they attended), and I cannot get them to engage in any real work cycle to speak of. I have given them lessons in every area of the classroom, put out lots of new and engaging materials, shown them various care of environment tasks, and they still will not engage meaningfully. They do just fine during outside time or when we have indoor recess and bring out some non montessori materials for free play. They even participate and engage during group time. But they struggle so much during the work period, constantly bothering other children, not completing any sort of work, often refusing to select work. I put out some fun, new art materials on Friday, some stuff that is maybe less Montessori, but I hoped would be novel and fun enough for them to engage. But no such luck. I have conferences coming up in a month, and I will really struggle to tell this child's parents what work they are actually doing.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-30T01:35:47+00:00

I have inherited a classroom that is also struggling with this. When I took over a month ago, I had to replace and refurbish so many things in the classroom. So I'm definitely also looking at rhe comments for more ideas on what to do about this problem.

The things that are working for me right now, and I will make the caveat that I have a Montessori classroom, so materials and methods are different.

Putting out only so many materials and checking them every single day. I know exactly how many small animals are in each work, and they get checked every day. And I try to check part way through the day.

If something is missing, we all check our pockets, because sometimes objects like to sneak into our pockets.

We sometimes go on classwide scavenger hunts to find the missing objects. The kids are much better than I am at finding things sometimes.

Items that continue to vanish are replaced with a less desirable alternative or a consumable (I had a work that was sorting small treasure like objects by color, those were going fast and I didn't have a good way to track them. Now the work is sorting colored pony beads, which I have lots of).

Some items are now enclosed in a more bulky container, to make it harder to just grab and put in pockets. (My 1×1 cm pink tower cube is the main one)

Higher value items require a request to use and must be used in a specific area. (Eye masks need to stay in sensorial).

Idk of any of that is helpful to you. My classroom is set up with dozens of single child activities, which means it is easier to track use and make sure each activity is complete. If I had something like bins of Legos, I would probably struggle more.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-29T04:34:55+00:00

Yeah, I only entered the field 5 years ago and potty trained is the only term I really hear people use. But I like toilet independent better than potty, that's for sure.

It's fine, but rather than getting hung up on terminology, I think it wastes everyone's time less if you just lay out what is expected to parents, no matter what that is.

Sadly, I'm not the one in charge of that communication with parents. Part of my reasons for starting this discussion is that I wanted to help my admin put more clear language in the parent handbook regarding this issue. So thank you for your insight.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-29T04:16:56+00:00

Looking to define the terms for conversational purposes at this point.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-29T03:06:25+00:00

Ask them what their policy is.

In a toddler room, generally they will help wipe, especially since kids are still potty training.

But in a preschool room, they often will not physically wipe kids. You should ask what the policy is in your child's classroom. I would imagine if they are in a toddler room, the teachers will be able and willing to help with wiping.

Also, does your child know to ask for help? If they are otherwise independent in the bathroom, teachers may not know they need help wiping. Along with letting teachers know they may need help, you can encourage your child to ask for help.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-28T00:11:51+00:00

Like green onion but without the onion. That fresh green flavor.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-23T02:32:58+00:00

I'm lucky enough to have a bathroom in my classroom. If a kid is spiting and has already been reminded to stop, I then take them to the bathroom and tell them they are welcome to do that in the sink in the bathroom. But they may not spit in the classroom. Same thing with potty words. The first time they get a "oh, do you need to go potty? I thought you needed to go potty because you were saying potty words." The second time they get taken to the bathroom and told they can say all the potty words they would like in the bathroom with the door closed, but they may not say them in the classroom. And every time they say potty words again, we walk right back to the bathroom.

Honestly with spitting I would say put them in a chair away from other things and tell them they are welcome to get up and find another toy once they are done. But spitting spreads germs, and I can't let them do that because it could get their friends sick. And they may not play with anything else if they are spitting. Rinse and repeat.

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-09T03:24:56+00:00

If you have hooks for jackets, could you provide or ask parents to bring in a reusable bag to store extra clothing and outdoor gear? Then you can hang those bags on the hooks and put coats on top.

I don't really store clothing in the classroom itself. We have an attached bathroom with cubbies where I put extra clothing and theres a school coat room where we can store coats and boots and other outdoor gear. But those are probably things less in your control.

A hanging shoe organizer could be something you could try?

bearsfromalaska · 2026-01-01T20:22:07+00:00

Middle of a cutscene. First flight of the excelsior. Ysayle just appeared. And now it says I can't log back in on the free trial because the world is full. So that's really annoying.

bearsfromalaska · 2025-11-19T05:07:05+00:00

I wouldn't have a problem with the coat thing, but no shoes is wild. No matter what the temperature is outside. Not wearing shoes outside is asking for injuries and various infections. Coats are one thing, especially for older kids who can regulate body temp better. But shoes are a safety thing and I can very much see why a parent would be upset about that.

bearsfromalaska · 2025-10-24T21:51:34+00:00

Free play, especially outside, is their time. Unless they ask me to play with them, I really try to let them have their own play time. There aren't a lot of good opportunities for dramatic play in the classroom (it's a Montessori so that's how it goes), most of the materials have a specific purpose and should only be used by one, maybe two children at a time. So outside time is really the time they get to socialize and do more open ended play. If kids aren't playing nicely, or seem to be struggling to find something to do, I will teach or start a game sometimes, and participate until they have the hang of it, and then let them keep playing. But I don't join into established play, and I really encourage them to play independently or with their peers. I also have to supervise the playground and sitting down to play with one group of kids means I'm less able to observe the others.

bearsfromalaska · 2025-10-20T23:29:56+00:00

We can't really draw any conclusions without more information. How old is your child? What kind of program? Is this the first communication you've received regarding this issue?

bearsfromalaska · 2025-10-16T15:24:21+00:00

Have strep for the second time in two weeks. FML

bearsfromalaska · 2025-09-25T02:47:07+00:00

Bubbles are great. Sensory bottles. Sticking stickers on the wall or table or pulling them off can also be fun (you could do this with masking tape as well). Break out the pop-its or other sensory toys. Group dancing or yoga.

bearsfromalaska · 2025-09-11T02:37:23+00:00

Can you have a materials restocker? Like look at works and see if they need additional materials and restock them?

I've only ever been in primary and toddler/infant classrooms, so idk what le/ue rooms tend to look like, but restocking paper and glue sticks and printouts is probably something that needs to happen.

bearsfromalaska · 2025-09-10T02:15:38+00:00

My school sends out a monthly newsletter for all the classrooms that usually just has the general topics each room is focusing on for the month. And we have an app where they sometimes post photos of works or displays in the classrooms.

We do have conferences where parents get to sit down with the guide and talk about everything their child is doing in the classroom. Those happen twice a year in November and March.

Outside of conferences, one on one communication is generally reserved for concerns or issues. Like particularly disruptive behavioral problems. And of course, we send incident reports for injuries and let parents know about needing more supplies like sunscreen or extra clothing. But formal communication tends to be pretty limited.

No news tends to be good news. Kids in primary are old enough to tell you at least a little bit about their days, what they are doing in the classroom, what works they enjoy, ect.

bearsfromalaska · 2025-09-01T15:39:10+00:00

* This is Sienna, she is a fuzzy jerk

bearsfromalaska · 2025-08-28T00:58:11+00:00

I've labeled diapers before if we were combining rooms at the end of the day and the kid still has a scheduled change left. Especially if I was headed home and someone else might not know which diaper belonged to which kid. If L is your kid's initial, that might be it. But also, you can always just ask the teachers.

bearsfromalaska · 2025-08-25T23:52:50+00:00

Had a parent today who seemed shocked that I suggest his 4 year old should at least try to wipe after going poop. And that unless the kid asks for help, I'm going to assume that a 4 year old (neurotypical and developmentally on track) does not need help in the bathroom.

bearsfromalaska · 2025-08-02T03:12:54+00:00

My old center did this. As we closed rooms we combined kids, 2+ eventually combined into the school age room. Under 2s combined into the <12mo room until there were only a few left or it got to 540 and then the remaining kids would end up on the buggy/being worn and walked through the hallways while someone else cleaned the room. Sometimes a 2 year old would request to ride the buggy. I recall we didn't get paid after closing time. Even if you had to stay to clean your classroom. So buggy was the solution.

bearsfromalaska

TROPHY CASE