Nope, Not Like That

I must preempt this story with the following statement; I love the school my kids go to. The teachers I have dealt with are great and I know my little ones are getting a great education in a safe environment. I also have no interest in homeschooling. That being said, I am concerned with a concept that is rampant in public school, which is that everyone should fit into some cookie cutter mold and if that if you don't, you must be punished.

My daughter came home from school the other day and was telling me about a new rotation they started, music class. They are learning songs for a Christmas show and it was their first day with this particular teacher. Now, I can't imagine trying to keep 30 sixth graders interested and focused for an entire hour, which is why I'm not a public school teacher. I would assume that there would be some whispering and a couple outbursts when you have that many kids forced to stay in a seated position for longer than five minutes. At some point as the music is playing, the teacher tells the kids that they can get up and dance. Okay, dancing. From everything I know, which I admit isn't a lot, dancing means something different to every fucking person on the planet. Some people (I'm looking at you guys at the bar) consider it head bobbing and gawking at girls. Other people have natural abilities that usually make the rest of us look like asshats out on the dance floor. Dancing is a personal thing. You say dance in a group of thirty humans and you will get thirty different moves that could all be considered dancing.

One boy in her class stood up, the first to do so, and started dancing. The teacher looked over and said "No, not like that. You need to sit down." Was he grinding on his desk? No. Was he hurting another child? No. He was swaying from side to side, moving his arms to the music and was told that he needed to stop. Stop being yourself. Stop being original. Start doing what I think you should do or sit the hell down.

This is my issue with public school and perhaps it's the same in private schools, I don't know. What I do know, is that I have spent my entire adult life trying to make other people happy, trying to dance the way they wanted me to, trying to conform to some idea of "good" that was hammered into my head in public school. And it's bullshit. I don't want my kids to be mindless sheep for the rest of their lives and I have no interest in other adults squashing the originality they were born with. I told my daughter that she can dance however she wants to and that if she is asked to sit down, she should ask why. I never asked why and guess what? It hasn't benefited me in any way shape or form. I don't ever want my kids to be afraid to ask why it's not okay to be themselves. There are enough conformist, people pleasing douchebags on this planet already, it's time for a change. So dance....dance like no one is watching and when they do, don't let them tell you it's not the right way. There is no fucking 'right' way to be you.