Judges: No Bible at Pa. kindergarten show and tell

Judges: No Bible at Pa. kindergarten show and tell
By MARYCLAIRE DALE, Associated Press Writer

Monday, June 1, 2009


(06-01) 14:37 PDT PHILADELPHIA (AP) --

A U.S. court says a kindergartner's mother cannot read Scripture during show and tell, even if the Bible is the boy's favorite book.

Monday's ruling is a victory for the Marple Newtown School District in suburban Philadelphia.

The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals says the school's decision does not violate First Amendment rights given the nonpublic nature of the classroom and the tender age of the children.

The mother, Donna Kay Busch, argues the students heard stories related to Passover, Christmas and other religious holidays.

more...
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/06/01/national/a143703D58.DTL&tsp=1

"Show and tell" is voluntary rather than state-sanctioned...

But with a captive audience.

at that age, they are so impressionable, that the school can be reasonably concerned the kids won't understand the distinction between what the school is sponsoring, etc.

contrast this with NUMEROUS court cases amongst high school and junior high kids, etc. that have upheld their rights (often against school wishes/actions) to reference their religious beliefs, etc.

for example, one case involved a teacher assignment wherein the student was supposed to present an essay on a historical figure the child considered a hero to him.

the boy chose jesus, and the school said he couldn't do the essay on jesus.

the kid's parents appealed and the school was made to reverse its policy, in that they cannot make content discrimination like that.

i'm not saying i agree or disagree with THIS decision, but i think the age of the children was a major factor her

There is absolutely no proof that he lived.

i don't think that issue was brought up in the case, maybe it was stipulated that he was an historical figure.

regardless, the point is that the kid had a right to use an historical figure who also happened to be (in his eyes) the son of god (tm).

if the historical issue is a problem, feel free to substitute any of a # of saints, or other better established historical figures etc.

or those monks who invented beer. they get my vote!

but i agree that historical record for jesus' existence is spotty, at best.

Unless there were a lot of monks around in the 6th millennium BC.

snip

Beer is one of the world's oldest beverages,<1><2> with the history of beer dating back to the 6th millennium BC, and being recorded in the written history of ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia.<3> The earliest Sumerian writings contain references to beer. A prayer to the goddess Ninkasi known as "The Hymn to Ninkasi" serves as both a prayer as well as a method of remembering the recipe for beer in a culture with few literate people.

snip

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_beer

It's for the kids to develop their ability to speak in front of people ... Not for the parents.

I didn't consider that before I typed...

If it was the kid on his own....let him have at it...but to allow Mum to do the deed does make a difference.

As a former Kdg. teacher, I sometimes had at parent bring an animal for Show and Tell. The parent waited for Show and Tell to be over and took the animal home.
It was then up to the child to talk about the animal. It would have been fine with meif a child wanted to bring a Bible for Show and Tell.
I would have asked the child some questions about the book and let the children look at it. It would not been fine with me for a parent to come and read from the Bible.
That crossed the line.

....and tell. Now you know how old I am!

the sun and she turned tan.... It was very cool and greatly appreciated.

but according to the article they read stories from other religions so this seems like it may be biased.

I'd say no religion in public school, and apply it equally to every religion. If you must pray do it before, or after, or during lunch.

What kindergarten class gets passover stories read to them?