School Report Back

Touch wood, things are going swimmingly well so far!

The twins have settled in to Grade 1 really well.  They each have a lovely teacher and as I keep saying, I absolutely love our school.  I don't have any experience with other schools (my schooling was so long ago that it is all a distant memory*) so I can't say if our school is any better or any worse than other schools, but I am extremely happy with how things are run.  Everything is so organized and so efficient.  And the support I get from the other professionals on site (the educational psychologist and OT) is fantastic.  I feel incredibly lucky (long may it last!).

*Adam asked me if I was ever in Grade 1, so I said 'yes, a long time ago'. He asked whether it was when dinosaurs were around.  It was that long ago.

Just as an aside - sometimes some people can drive you crazy!  At the end of each year and the beginning of the next, the conversation in the car park ratchets up several notches with talk about which teacher your child will get.  "I hope we don't get So and So because she is very strict / shouts / other stuff."  Or "I hope we get Teacher XYZ, she is the best".  The first year I was there, I got myself into a bit of a state listening to all of this because I was pooping myself that one of the kids would get Teacher So and So who shouted / was very strict / other stuff. And then I realized that throughout their schooling, one of my kids would not get the 'best' teacher as they will never be in the same class.  One of them would get the second best teacher or heaven forbid, the Teacher Who Shouts.  There is absolutely no point in getting worked up about it.  I might be very naive but I don't believe any of the teachers are truly horrible.  Perhaps there might be a personality clash with a particular child but I choose believe that teachers are professionals and they will provide the best service they are capable of.  I hope that if my child does the best he or she can, that the teacher will recognize and appreciate that and teach my child to the best of their ability.  And yes, perhaps some teachers are stricter than others.  Which is not necessarily a bad thing.  So, I am not going to get caught up in the hysteria of whether the kids have got the 'best' teacher or the 'strict' teacher.  My faith in the school is such that I believe they will have the good teachers who do their best.

If I am being totally naive about all of this, don't say anything. I prefer to believe that most people are good than worry about the few that might not be.

Moving on...

Sister Mel has been terrorizing me for years about HOMEWORK. Apparently homework is the bane of any other mother's life and she couldn't wait for me to spend my afternoons listening to 7 year olds s l o w l y  spell out words about Kipper and Biff and Chip.  I must be honest and say that I am not so excited about the prospect of doing homework for the next few years.  If there is one motherly duty I could outsource, it would be this.  However, we will soldier on. The kids are really excited and keen about homework.  Novelty and all that. 

Yesterday we were thinking of all the words that started with a W.  The kids were shouting out words like watermelon, walrus, water, wave etc and then Adam added: "Wose!" (Rose) Rose and I had to try really hard not to laugh. We didn't laugh.  He would have been very upset.  Adam hates being embarrassed. Who doesn't!

I know it is a real stereotype but it is amazing how much better Kate is at reading and writing and how much better Adam is at sums and numbers.  Adam LOVES money, so has been very quick to pick up addition and subtraction.  

As for Maxy boy, well well well.  I was so anxious about sending him to school. I was scared he would miss me. I was scared he would be sad and lonely (even though I absolutely love the teacher and I KNOW the school he is at is fantastic). I was scared he would cry and cry and cry.  

Well, not one tear shed (besides mine).  He has taken to school like a duck to water.  Unbelievably.  I do realize that this might change and that he must not want to go to school at some point, but so far so good!  He is obviously more like Kate (didn't cry ONCE) than like Adam (cried Every Single Day for eight months). Praisethelord!

So after all my anxiety and worrying about how it would go for them, it has gone really well, thank goodness.  

Comments

[acidicice]

Really glad for you that things are going so well. I am yet to go through all of this and hope it will be a smooth ride for us as well :)

[Debbie]

I absolutely love what you wrote about teachers. The same thing happens here in the States and I refuse to get caught up in it. I figure that my kids will not always get along with everyone in life and the sooner they learn the skills to deal with that, the better off they will be.

Glad to hear the kids area all doing so well.

[Vannessa]

As a mom whose son has just gone into high school I would rather not burst your bubble and will just keep quiet. Is there an LS for laugh softly?? I really hate using lol. MY Max ie Mitchell is starting school next week FOR THE FIRST TIME! I am stressing even though I know he will be fine.

[Cat@juglingact]

Ai yes, I have to say that I found grade 1 much more challenging than my Princess does. And funny enough I also did my first sort of review post today

[Stefanie]

It took me a long time to stop letting the teacher gossip get to me. In fact, last year I had been told I would not like my son's teacher by a neighbor. Her son had him 5 years before. Well, that teacher is the best teacher any of our children had had (24, 15 and 10) ever. She helped us get ds with his corrected diagnosis of adhd and changed him from hating school to loving it. He went from class clown to class leader. I should have known neighbor was wrong - her child is a little shit!

[Mel]

Dear mothers who don't like the teacher: I am afraid its probably your critter that is a bit of a mare. I have 1 naughty ADD boy, 1 super nerd future head girl type and 1 regular although sensitive child. Teacher X was a mare for Daniel and years later teacher Y too. Some teachers are just not great with boys so naughty boys do not fare too well. Each teacher provides coping skills for your child for life and most teachers do have your child's best interests at heart.
V proud of my niece and nephs and of their mother too.

[Claire]

omg helicopter parents kill me. In the real world, the child is possibly not going to like their boss but they will still have to get the job done, and figure out how to cope with their coworkers different personalities. And if the teacher is *really* bad, then the child needs to be able to figure out where he is going to draw his own line, and then stand up for his decision. It is far better for the kid to develop these skills in primary school than later in life when it really matters.

Schools are about learning so much more than just the curriculum.

I may not be qualified to talk about this from a mom's perspective yet as my son is not yet 2. But I think I am qualified from an educator's perspective as I've taught first year physics at UJ for two years. I can't believe how ill-equipped for life the kids coming out of school today are.... believing reasons such as "I just didn't get along with the lecturer" are perfectly valid reasons for failing! (Really, I have heard it all)

[Irene]

Tertia, perhaps is because I am not English and given that I love languages I have a bit idealised the people who speaks and writes not only in English but in a fresh colloquial yet still beautiful English like you. So, not sure if it's partly because of this English-idealisation but your posts make me laugh LOUD always, or almost... what makes me laugh is not so much the things you explain but specially the way you explain them, the words and the tone you use. Like i can see you in a little picture in that scene. And I wish you were my friend to share that sense of humor. Thank you for being so funny and making me laugh so much, because I appreciate a good laugh more and more as I get older.

[JS]

I have twin girls in 4th grade in the States. They were together in Kindergarten and that was a HUGE mistake. Since then they have been in separate classes and I can totally relate to the idea that if you buy into the "best" and "worst" teacher idea one of your kids is going to miss out each year. That being said, I think the whole idea of who the "best" and "worst" teachers are in the end are totally subjective. I have 2 VERY different daughters and I am amazed each year how attuned our school is to matching their teachers to their personalities and learning styles. Every year (so far) I learn that each daughter had the best teacher for them and how if the classrooms were switched what a different (and potentially hard) year they each would have had. BTW I also have a 4 year old and he LOVES school because his school is great and he's a super kid but I think also that his goal in life is to keep up with his sisters so he never fails to leave for school in the morning with sisters with a huge smile on his face. I'm sure you have had a similar experience - it's all good :)

[best crib mattress]

Good articles and thanks for sharing! But it's so weird that you blog is in a mess through my new Firefox. I dont think it's my explore problem? Beacuse it's pretty normal when visit other websites.

[Rose]

As a teacher myself, and on behalf of all teachers, THANK YOU for your faith in us! We do try to do the best we can. Really.

[Wobs]

My heart sometimes goes out to teachers who have to put up with sometimes up tp 30 kids in a class. I battle to cope with 2 at home - kudus to the teachers who try their best but have to put up with disruptive or rude or arrogant kids. Unfortunately it's those kids that make it horrible for the other kids and the teacher and if the teacher retaliates then he/she is the problem.... It does go without say though that there are some "monster" teachers out there but I think that is the minority.

[Kathy]

I say go for it - monitoring him while he's on it can be done regularly and that way you can keep up with how he's handling it. My sister had amazing results on it though!