Irene had her first day of school a little later than her two sisters did. They started on August 6 (Wed) and she started on August 11 (Mon). I really enjoyed having her all to myself for those few days.
Irene is in afternoon Kindergarten this year. Her teacher is new, and I have to say that the first few days she had a type of "deer in headlights" approach. LOL! She has 27 Kindergarteners, many of whom appear to never have had school before. There are lots of sweet little boys who are very attached to their Mommies and cry and cry and cry - not wanting to be in school. It is heart-breaking.
My kid? She is more toward "Don't let the door hit ya on the way out, Mom!" LOL! :-)
The first day, she asked me if she could wear her "party dress." Sure! Of course! What Kindergartener would be properly dressed on the first day without a fancy dress of raw silk, complete with multiple button-in slips?? This dress reminds me of the fancy dresses I had as a child.
She had her new Hello Kitty (we call her Kitty Chan in our house) backpack and most of her supplies. May helped her back them. Hee. Close enough.
She was SO HAPPY after school, having LOVED her first day! She was also COMPLETELY EXHAUSTED from the stress of it.
This is her first year "on her own" without a sister to cover for her. Remember - she has only been with us for a year now. She is still mimicking and agreeing, as she continues to learn English. This is work for her! She SHINES academically, knowing all her ABCs, counting, shapes, sequencing, letter sounds, etc. But, the common exchanges in English are what she works on. She gets better and better, and will one day have seemless understanding with both receptive and expressive language. Time. It will bre great for Irene and Jane to be in different grades and each be able to shine on their own, and have their own space and place.
Here are some photos of Irene on her first day - heading off to school, standing by her classroom door, standing near the front door, with her friend the school nurse, in line, in class and after school. She is one amazing kid!! I am so proud of her! I had not anticipated being teary about her heading off to school. But, even the thought of how far she has come and how hard she works, and how she does it without ME just makes me teary.
1 comment:
I love reading your blog Holly! I cannot believe how many ways our lives mirror each other. I love Irene's dress. I taught kindergarten for 3 years and loved the kids that dressed up for the first day. I knew they were serious about being there.
She has changed so much from your original yahoo group blog type thing. You should be very proud.
I'm just glad she made it home in one piece! Kindergarten can be sooo exhausting. I bet the teacher looked even worse!
You do know that backpacks straps can be taken up, don't you? The only reason I ask is because Annabel's was weighing on her the same way that Irene's and May's fit and our guide adjusted the straps and then it actually stayed on her back! For the first time in 15 days!
I think that backpack looks good and full too! Can't believe you guys start earlier than us.
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