School, Autumn, Life

Life continues to roll on, complete with mild-to-moderate sleep deprivation and busy schedules (mostly B). E has settled in to preschool, and is the youngest in his class by some way (only August-born). I have mixed feelings about school in general... whether he'll be a child who falls through the cracks, gets bullied, perhaps overlooked by adults due to his general easygoing nature and reluctance to rock the boat.

He is not like a "typical boy" running around playing guns, dinosaurs, etc (although he's into vehicles, especially trains) and although he has social skills, they don't extend to defending himself when confronted by someone aggressive (or perhaps even another very assertive child). He takes criticism to heart and is sensitive, but tends not to show it on the outside. For example, he'll come home and tell me an aide was "cross with him" for something or other. He can tell me the context, because he's quite verbal, and these incidents are always, from an adult point of view, trivial. Yet to him they are a big deal, and I'm trying to process how I feel about that - whether it's a "necessary evil" for him to learn about the world, or whether I ought to look at ways to protect him from that kind of thing until he matures a little bit more. I don't like the idea of sending him off to kindergarten at the age of 4 - one MONTH after he turns 4, to be precise.

I would rather, in my heart of hearts, send him to a Montessori preschool until he hits 5. He is reading simple words now - my, no, dog, on, a few others. He is asking "what do these words spell?" every day. He is (and has been) counting with one-one correspondence up to at least five or six, and more if he is in a careful mood. He uses words like "reflection" accurately, in context, and as part of his general vocabulary. He can draw faces although he isn't much interested in drawing in general (he enjoys painting more). He is musical. He is kind.

And I just don' t feel his teachers are seeing much of this (if at all). I had a scheduled 10 minute talk with them on a parent conference day and E sat to color in a picture while I chatted. One on one with the aide, he colored in an "S" and volunteered the sound it made (sss) and also that "Snake begins with S." She was surprised. I wasn't. And I understand that there's a minimum ratio the teachers deal with but I do struggle with knowing that my son is possibly getting overlooked. Not that I want him to be drilled academically, but... it'd be nice if they appreciated what he can do. I get the feeling that the wheels are in motion for preschoolers who need extra help, but no plans in place that recognizes advanced/gifted children. And I will be honest and say that it makes me a little bit angry.

Angry that the school talks about how important attendance is and talks about FINING parents who take their child on vacation when school is in session... yet doesn't seem to recognize each child is an individual. I am fully on board with E learning how to stand in line, wait his turn, etc (actually he does all that pretty well already) but I am NOT on board with him becoming a little lemming and losing the ability to think for himself/outside the box. And I do think school, as a whole, promotes that. It's easier for the teachers, perhaps, easier for "the majority."

Well, I don't know where I'm going with this, but it's nice to put my thoughts down. I'm sure I'll refer to this post later in life. B and I sometimes go back to older posts on this blog to see how we felt back then, or look at pictures, or find the dates of something we all did. So now I've got this entry and down the line, when I need to make a definitive decision about his schooling, I'll be able to refer to it.

I think what I'd most like is a halfway house. If I could send him to school for half-days and then involve him in extracurricular activities a few times per week (sports, language, music) I would be happy. I don't think I'm up for 100% homeschooling, just as I feel leery about 100% regular schooling. I guess the only thing to do is watch how things go and play it by ear.

Meanwhile... life rolls on... we went to Clapham today to the tea place at the edge of the Common.

Father-son matching blue turtlenecks. Pistachio ice cream for the young master.

A nice treat.

Clowning around outside for the camera.
C chewing my ring!

I have a picture of me standing by this fence when I was 28 weeks pregnant with E... life really does fly by!

They love each other.

Going toward the car after a little walk around. We ran into friends about 30 seconds after I snapped this photo!

That's all for now. We are in the thick of autumn and I'm enjoying it despite the cold mornings. It's feeling like a good time to wrap up warm, enjoy cocoa, unwind, prepare for the incoming holidays. We are off to Wales in mid-November and Halloween is soon....