First Day of School

Yesterday we started school and despite one crabby six-year-old and one ten day old baby who hit the first day of a growth spurt and wanted to nurse every five seconds, it actually went pretty well. The kids seem happy to be back in a routine and interested in what they were learning. I'm sure things will change in the next few weeks, but it was a decent start to the school year.

My fourth grader!



My first/second grader!



The whole gang.

Last Day of School

Madeleine and I had her last day home-schooling earlier this week which I will blog about at some point.

But today was Hank's day. Today was his last day of school. My little guy was excited because, let's face it, what kid isn't excited about endless days of hotness, swimming and friends laid out before them? So Hank is excited that school is over. But he's sad too. He loved his teacher and he bonded with a lot of kids in his class and enjoyed the constant playtime (he dismissed any carpet gathering time or time spent at his table as "boring").

Right now excited/sad Hank is outside playing with the neighborhood brood (we just hit twenty-three kids on our block last Saturday!) but just a few short hours ago he was running up the sidewalk to the K4 doors (he's wearing a blue backpack).

And, then, just a few short hours after that, he comes charging out of the K4 doors for the last time (see the kid with a mile-wide grin on his face who's sticking his head up like an ostrich? That's Hank).

And that's it. Summer vacation has begun!

Hobby Lobby: Hank's Turn

Long-time readers of my blog may remember about our school's Lobby Hobby. New readers may want a quick primer.

Last week was Hank's turn to showcase a prized possession. He chose his toy cars and their accompaniments like a Hot wheels car village and tractor trailer car carriers. It was quite the display.


He took his junior kindergarten companions to the display last Thursday and gamely told me that they boys liked his display but the girls were generally more interested in the My Little Pony display directly above his. He also relayed that his friend Curly who, being a good friend, did look at Hank's display before being lured away by all the pink and glitter directly above, challenged his decision to include a coloring book, for Pete's sake, in s display about cars. Hank laughed while telling the tale and said, "Duh-- because it's NASCAR." Apparently Curly lives a NASCAR-free life. I sort of thought Hank did too, but I guess that little punk knows more than I give him credit for.

Hank's Winter Concert

I know, I know, unless you're a grandparent or parent you probably can't stand another video of one of my kids. Sadly though, Superdad had to miss Hank's Winter Concert today, something both Hank and Superdad were very sad about.

Superdad does, however, have the ability to view my blog while he's away (isn't he lucky?!) and, for him, I will share the very substandard, grainy video of smiley Hank performing two of his numbers. Hank is right in the middle of the frame in a bright orange fleece and an ear-to-ear grin.

Hank's School Picture

Ah, school pictures. Some of the worst pictures I've ever had taken of me have appeared in yearbooks for hundreds to see and for generations to come. I've always hated school pictures.

Until this year. Did you ever see a more photogenic little boy?

Morning Conversation

The following conversation took place this morning.

Me: Guess what Hank! Your class is going on a field trip on your birthday. And guess what else-- I get to be a chaperone!

Hank (with a huge grin plastered on his face): Really Mom? A field trip? And you get to come with?! Yay! (He stops to hug me.) I've never been on a school bus before! Do you think it will be a big one?!

Me: Oh, yes, I'm sure it will. Will you sit by me on the bus, Hank?

Hank: (long pause): Weeeell... (concerned look on face) I might want to sit by Curly*.

Hmph.

*Yeah, so obviously Hank doesn't have a friend named Curly, for pity's sake. It's an alias. A very clever, imaginative alias.

First Day of School, 2007

Hank is a frustrating boy for a crazed photographer like me. I mean, really, look at his face. Looks at the expression he's giving the camera. And this was the best picture he gave me yesterday morning. Most of them were more like this:

And Madeleine. Oh, Madeleine. If she spots a camera within one hundred yards of her, that teeth barring, is-this-over-yet-Mom? smile is all you're going to get.

So the pictures weren't so good.

But school. Oh, well school is another story.

Hank's biggest complaint about Junior Kindergarten was that it was over too soon (they only went for an hour today so, really, it was very short). So comfortable was he in his new surroundings that he was waving his hand violently within moments of arrival as his new teacher asked for volunteers to compete various classroom chores. She did say she'd choose someone who raised their hand nicely, but apparently Hank's arm-thrashing did the trick and he and his friend T___ (who he'd met and played with prior to today) were the chosen students. Generally, success on that front.

Madeleine had a great first day too. I started assembling materials last spring and a few weeks ago I put together some general lesson ideas for the first few weeks. I am awed how quickly Madeleine and I whizzed through them together this morning. Granted, I didn't have a terribly ambitious agenda today, but we were easily done by noon, leaving plenty of time for the park and Madeleine's highly coveted "alone time."

During our spelling lesson Madeleine got the surprise of her academic life. We were taking a practice test and the words were clearly just too easy for her and she spelled them all correctly, no problem. I told her I thought we should just skip that unit.

"What Mom? You mean just skip it? Like, without doing any of the work for it?"

"Yes, Madeleine, exactly that."

We ended up skipping five other units as well, much to her surprise and glee.

The best surprise, to me anyway, was that Madeleine wasn't in full-on meltdown mode by six p.m., a common occurrence when she was in school full time. So, success on the home schooling front too.

One day down, two hundred eighty-three days to go. But hey, who's counting?

Back to School

Apparently Elisabeth doesn't want to be left out of the back to school mania taking place around here.

Yesterday Superdad, the kids and I headed over to the school to meet Hank's teacher for his upcoming year of Junior Kindergarten. We chatted with friends, shook hands with new faces and felt the excitement of newly sharpened pencils, fresh name tags and nervous soon-to-be students. The morning was, as it should have been, all about Hank. Well, and Madeleine too since she ran into her old teachers, gave and received hugs and played with her friends; but it's a given in our family that even if it's about someone else, it's really about Madeleine also.

After we got home I busied myself in the kitchen writing Hank's name on all his school supplies when suddenly I heard a foreign "whirring" sound. I was puzzled. Madeleine and Hank were outside, absorbed with the little squirts on the block and Elisabeth was quietly playing in... no, wait, she wasn't. There she was, sitting at the kids' art table in the living room, preparing for her future academic career by sharpening all the pencils in the cup on the kids' art table.


What subject should we start the eager student out with this year? Algebra?


Advanced trigonometry perhaps?



And please, ignore the fact that she needs to have her nose wiped. It's hard to be intelligent and beautiful.

School Registration, 2007

I don't know if any of you remember, but last year around this time the entire parental population of our local public school, including me, were wringing our hands about school registration and teacher assignments. I'm ashamed to admit it now, but I think that I even ran over to the school once the class lists were posted to take a picture of Madeleine's class list so that my obsession would be accurately fueled when all the other manic moms called me.

This year I feel like I've discovered the cure for high blood pressure: home schooling. Sure, that brings with it its own stress and obsessions, but they're different and, best yet, fall entirely within my own control.

Yes, I played the school registration game yesterday for Hank but my mindset was entirely different; I was really more of a benched, red-shirted player (he's only going into junior kindergarten for pity's sake). I just didn't care who his teacher was or who was in his class because I feel like making the decision to home school has empowered me, in a way. I now realize that it's OK-- no, good-- to challenge the assumptions of the experts because doing so actually causes you to challenge your own assumptions and the net result is knowing more about something than you did before, and I think this is true whether your child is home schooled, or taught in a public or private school.

My neighbors and friends are still calling about school registration, but they're calling either to celebrate their child's teacher assignment or to complain about it. I can hear the stress and the angst in their voices, the same stress and angst I remember lacing my own voice at this time last year. It's stress and angst that, I know, will dissipate in a week or so; probably it will correspond to mine increasing exponentially or, in other words, when I actually start home schooling instead of just talking about it.

First Grade Wrap-Up (almost)

The end of the school year is always so, so busy, and most of what Madeleine's class, and tangentially me, are busy with never seems really academic. That's acceptable though, since I'm a pretty laid back kinda gal. I'd rather they just be plain done with school two weeks earlier but, in place of that, I think the roller skating, various parties for this and that and trips to Dairy Queen seem reasonable.

I've been fortunate enough to be able to chaperon two field trips this month, volunteer at their class picnic, attend their class poetry party and walk along with the class to Dairy Queen. It's been busy, but it's been fun.

Some highlights follow.

First, Madeleine's class Poetry Party, featuring original compositions. Madeleine wants to compose her own post featuring her original poem though, so it won't be featured tonight since, as I write this, it's past the future Poet Laureate's bedtime.

The walk to Dairy Queen. Even messy Hank (see the ice cream all over his face?) and tired Elisabeth (she fell asleep in her stroller) got to tag along on this adventure. It was well over ninety degrees and humid the day Madeleine's class set forth and the ice cream seemed to begin melting before the first graders reached for the sticky cones from the Dairy Queen employee. However, after depleting Dairy Queen of its 2007 napkin supply, all was well.


We're almost there; the school year is almost over. They have today and Monday left, and then summer. It's been a fun year, but who doesn't look forward to lazy days of summer?

Nate the Great

Do you remember the Nate the Great detective stories? I do. I remember reading them in grade school and enjoying the mystery and the climax, when the mystery would finally be solved.

Earlier in the week I was helping out in Madeleine's classroom and the kids were taking turns reading to me. I was excited to see that one of the books assigned was a Nate the Great mystery. After reading me one section of the book I commented to C______, one of Madeleine's classmates, "You know, C______, I used to read these when I was in school."

C______ looked at me incredulously. "Really? That must be why the pictures are all black and white," he responded.

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Yep, " I said. "Must be."

Hobby Lobby

Or is it Lobby Hobby? I don't know. What I do know is Madeleine's school has a display in their lobby and any child who wants to has a chance to display something that they're interested in from home for a week each year. Its name is the Lobby Hobby. Or Hobby Lobby. Whichever the store of a similar name is not. Who cares, right?

This week is Madeleine's big week and she chose to take artifacts from our trip to Folly Beach, South Carolina last July. It contained sea shells that she collected on the beach, pictures of our trip, a picture she drew of us on the airplane prior to leaving and a doll from the Charleston, South Carolina Historical Society store that is modeled after a doll from the late 1700s.

Tuesday she took her class down to show off her display and answer questions.

"What questions did your classmates ask?" I inquired after school.

"I don't know," was her response.

"Madeleine, it was only a few hours ago; surely you remember some of the questions. Did anyone ask any questions?"

"Yes." A regular orator, that Madeleine.

"OK, who asked questions?" Do you see how good I am at badgering my children? I should have been a detective.

"Well, A__ did."

"OK, what did she ask?"

"She wanted to know how long I was on vacation."

"And what did you tell her?" Pulling teeth I tell you, pulling teeth.

"Well, I couldn't remember."

"Oh. Did anyone else ask any questions?"

"I don't know, Mom. Can I have a snack?"