My two oldest boys have struggled with school this year. It seems all of a sudden to me, but I know that it's not. This is likely one of those many things which I simply didn't have time to notice before.
My oldest has extreme organizational problems. I'm convinced that it's not because he's lazy or dislikes school. His oblivious gaze when we discuss deadlines, homework and tests seems genuine. I don't know what the problem is, but the solution (at least for now) has been for me to double check his homework status daily and help him study for tests. I've always liked math, so repeating algebra doesn't bother me. Other classes I don't like so much.
My second oldest is lazy. There is no other way to put it. And, his teacher pretty much put it that way at conferences tonight, too. He scores in the 99th percentile in every standardized test. He should get straight As, but manages to get mostly Bs and B minuses. He also has some poor behavior at school which I find very distressing.
Both boys have suffered the reduction of privileges because of their school work. I've tried to be fair and give them fair notice, but sometimes they simply have to face a consequence. As we enter the final semester of the year I hope they turn things around.
