8/25/09 School Day

I took advantage of Katrina's last week of childcare on Tuesdays and Thursdays to catch up on doctor's appointments and other things around the house. I also snuck in a nap and a run, but not before dropping the boys off at school.


I like having some contact with their classes by watching interactions with the kids waiting, chatting with the moms, and seeing how they behave in class. Julian has already made several friends, enough so that another mom smiled at me before class and said, "oh, you're Julian's mom?" Julian can't remember any of his new friends' names though, understandable since they're all fancy Indian names that take me some time too. (Thank goodness for Gabriel's pal Parth!)


I got a sneak peek at Gabriel's class too. One of his teachers was raised on an apple farm, so they're doing a lot about apples this week. For once, I don't mind at all the parent-participation homework of having to find labels around the kitchen with apples.


Then I had to return to Katrina's class because I'd forgotten her lunch again. Naturally, see what I found her doing!


I chatted briefly with Julian's old preschool teacher, Miss Amanda, and told her that Julian claims kindergarten is SOOOO easy, and that the work she had him doing in preschool was much harder. I'd had a feeling she had been a pretty rigorous teacher; much of his little science learnings came from her, and she had noticed and asked me about his reading on his first day. She laughed and said, "Well, his pre-K class was so advanced, the kindergarten material was too easy for them, so I had them doing first-grade work."

OH!!

Now I have a little more context for why Miss Amanda had commented that she thought Julian could skip a grade, which I completely disagree with, especially since kindergarten isn't about academics. I'm very reluctant for any grade-skipping, but at age 5 it's ridiculous to even mention.

Of course, Julian doesn't mind that kindergarten is "easy," he said today it's fun, and he's making friends (something Gabriel never mentioned) and that he really likes his teacher. And that's what matters in the first week of your school career!

I caught up on doctor's appointments today, including something I've put off way too long, something all women of my vintage should do yearly, especially if their grandmother died of breast cancer and their aunt survived it. I recently received admonishment for having put it off, and one of my regular readers present at said admonishment should consider it reiterated if she too has not scheduled The Squish. You know who you are, blondie.

8/25/09