we had mimi's kindergarten parent/teacher conference last week, but it's taken me awhile to synthesize my feelings on it all before posting about it. initially, when mimi started kindergarten, it was a stressful time for both mimi and me. i won't lie...it was really, really hard to let her go. in my mind, i was looking forward to full day kindergarten for mimi because i felt like i could finally give ozzy some attention, so i wasnt really prepared for just how long of a day a full day K would be. it was a big adjustment for us. not only that, but there were so many activities that mimi wanted to participate in or that i wanted for her and trying to fit it all in has been another big stressor.
going in to kindergarten i had all kinds of apprehensions about the teacher, friendships, etc. i met with the principal in the summer before school started and shared my concerns and feelings about what i wanted for mimi and based on what i told her about mimi's needs, she felt that mimi should get the most experienced teacher they had.
even knowing she was getting a good teacher, i was still stressed about leaving mimi. and of course the first day of school, mimi had her head down on the table, she seemed tired and bored and stressed, and then at lunch time, i was worried because she was sitting at the table by herself at a 'peanut free' table, and i worried that she would be outcast because of her allergy. worry worry worry. at snack time, what if she ate something a friend gave her and it had peanuts in it? worry worry worry. what is she was bored with school? worry worry worry. what if she didnt make friends? worry worry worry. what if i wasnt allowed to come in and volunteer? worry worry worry. i was so stressed that rob and i started looking into private school options for mimi.
as the year went on my worries started ease up and mimi started to get used to the long hours of full day kindergarten. and by mid october, she started to tell me about her school day with animation in her voice and was showing enjoyment. that really helped me to feel much better. her moods were basically the only barometer i had to go by. if she was sad and tired after school, i was stressed for her. if she was upbeat and had lots of good things to tell me about, the stress went away.
the first tues in november, we went in for the parent teacher conference. by then, i had been in the classroom to volunteer a few times, met the kids, some of the parents, and was feeling much less anxious. mimi's teacher didnt seem to have too many concerns about mimi and was quite receptive to our concerns. she told us that mimi would be pulled out for reading and math since she is above grade level and to answer our concerns about mimi's social skills, she told us that she spent a lot of time teaching the kids about getting along and making/keeping friends. so really, rob and i left feeling like all was well. we still have an eye on some private school options, but for now, i'm just happy if mimi is enjoying school. for kindergarten, i think that's enough.
going in to kindergarten i had all kinds of apprehensions about the teacher, friendships, etc. i met with the principal in the summer before school started and shared my concerns and feelings about what i wanted for mimi and based on what i told her about mimi's needs, she felt that mimi should get the most experienced teacher they had.
even knowing she was getting a good teacher, i was still stressed about leaving mimi. and of course the first day of school, mimi had her head down on the table, she seemed tired and bored and stressed, and then at lunch time, i was worried because she was sitting at the table by herself at a 'peanut free' table, and i worried that she would be outcast because of her allergy. worry worry worry. at snack time, what if she ate something a friend gave her and it had peanuts in it? worry worry worry. what is she was bored with school? worry worry worry. what if she didnt make friends? worry worry worry. what if i wasnt allowed to come in and volunteer? worry worry worry. i was so stressed that rob and i started looking into private school options for mimi.
as the year went on my worries started ease up and mimi started to get used to the long hours of full day kindergarten. and by mid october, she started to tell me about her school day with animation in her voice and was showing enjoyment. that really helped me to feel much better. her moods were basically the only barometer i had to go by. if she was sad and tired after school, i was stressed for her. if she was upbeat and had lots of good things to tell me about, the stress went away.
the first tues in november, we went in for the parent teacher conference. by then, i had been in the classroom to volunteer a few times, met the kids, some of the parents, and was feeling much less anxious. mimi's teacher didnt seem to have too many concerns about mimi and was quite receptive to our concerns. she told us that mimi would be pulled out for reading and math since she is above grade level and to answer our concerns about mimi's social skills, she told us that she spent a lot of time teaching the kids about getting along and making/keeping friends. so really, rob and i left feeling like all was well. we still have an eye on some private school options, but for now, i'm just happy if mimi is enjoying school. for kindergarten, i think that's enough.
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