And they're off!

After a lot of fretting and some tears on my part (and a few on Paul's), I must say I'm glad to have the beginning of school under way. You know the anticipation is always the worst part. When I dropped off the boys at school on Thursday, their respective behaviors said a lot about who they are at this point in their lives. Paul hung close, holding my hand on the walk into school. Ben, on the other hand, blurted, "Can I just go, Mom?" Without waiting for an answer, he sprinted away without so much as a goodbye for his weepy mom. I suppose maybe a fourth-grader doesn't feel like receiving a schoolyard hug from his mom, anyway. (See the reason for the tears? Suddenly it's feeling like time is passing too quickly!)

With Ben having taken care of himself, all that remained was getting Paul to his classroom. I'm so thankful to Paul's kindergarten teacher. She'd had him in her get ready for kindergarten summer school class, and seeing his separation anxiety, she ensured us she would work to get him placed in her class for the fall. I think it's for that reason Paul's transition has gone relatively smoothly. Paul immediately found his seat and sat down with a smile on his face. (He did shed a few tears at the end of the day worrying that somehow we would fail to pick him up, but overall I'm calling his first two days a victory.)

The kindergarten teachers hold small group meetings with the parents the first week of school. As we met with Paul's teacher, I was struck by how much kindergarten has changed since I was kindergartener. There's the obvious changed that kindergarten is a full day now, but where I recall kindergarten as largely a rather laid-back preparation for the whole school experience, it's now very academics-focused. My recollection can't be crystal-clear, but I remember mostly snacks, play time and rest time. Paul's teacher explained that 100 minutes each day are devoted to literacy and ensured us that Paul soon would be writing short sentences. Wow! And that's not even to mention the time they spend on math, social studies, science.

As for Ben, he's in teacher heaven. For the first time ever, he has a male teacher, and not just a male, but one who is a sports fanatic. Ben's classroom is covered almost wall-to-wall in football and baseball clippings. It's funny how differently I view this when I have a son. I remember being mildly irritated when I came across teachers like these in my education (I remember one middle school teacher who used to give extra credit for predicting football scores - I'm pretty sure as a seventh grade girl I couldn't even conjure a plausible football score). As it is, I'm happy for Ben. Anyway, Ben's third-grade teacher thought this particular teacher would be a great fit for Ben because he previously taught in the district's now-defunct accelerated learners program. He told Ben he was going to challenge him and asked Ben if he was ready. This is exactly what my bright boy needs.

After I dropped off the boys and reached my car on Thursday, I had a good little cry. I'm glad to have the hardest part finished, but I know some unknowns still remain. Tomorrow Paul will have his first full day and will take the bus home with Ben. And Paul's teacher's baby is due in November, so he'll have a different teacher for three months. I know all of these are good life experiences for Paul. I'm optimistic that this will be a great school year.