It's begun! Or well, it'll begin in earnest tomorrow when C has her first full day. E went in today. I can hardly tell you how DIFFERENT this new school is compared to his last one. For one, it's more welcoming. You can take your child right into their classroom (his old school made us drop them off in the playground and they had to find their own way). The other parents were immediately welcoming, and one wrote my email on her hand in order to offer me/E an invitation to her child's birthday. (The parents at the last school hardly talked to strangers, let alone sent birthday invites.)
I walked away with a good feeling. I hope it lasts. I think six months of home education did E the world of good, especially since it got him out of that school, but I'll be so happy if this new place works out for him.
Here's some photos.
E's first day of Year 3, aged seven years, one month. That's a water bottle he's holding. No, the school has no uniform policy, which I think is cool.
C's first day of Reception (Kindergarten), aged four years, nine months. She actually starts her first full day tomorrow, but I took this on Thursday when she went in for a two hour "getting to know you" session. She's wearing a uniform because (for right now at least) she goes to a different school than E. We're hoping to get her a place at his school, since hers currently doesn't take grades higher than Year 1. It's a little bittersweet, because I quite like her school and have gotten to know some of the parents. Still, we are better off than we were at this point last year.
So, you ask, what are you going to
do tomorrow with nearly
six hours of
free time?
Yes, that's a good question. Probably I am going to spend a few minutes capering in circles and gibbering. Then I am going to buck up, go to a cafe, get some coffee, and WRITE LOTS OF WORDS. Now and again I will resist the urge to go
eeeeee! under my breath. Mind you, I will eventually miss having a little sidekick along with me. It was truly fun while it lasted. And I won't completely rule it out in the future should it need to happen again... at the same time, I hope it doesn't NEED to happen.
