A day of firsts

• Aidan's first day in his 3-4year old preschool class.  Big boy!  He didn't even look back.  I left him rattling off a series of things to Mrs. Ginger about his trucks, very important I have no doubt.  Later, when he told me about his day, he referred to the playground, his classroom, and his school as Connor's school--like he was at Connor's school today and he played on Connor's playground, etc.  I'm sure the idea of following his big bro's footsteps is a comforting feeling (no surprises...Connor survived and therefore, so will I).  I pray for Aidan to always know that Jesus loves him, for him to continue to light the world like sunshine, and for his new friendships to grow.
• Today, we saw the first tears from Connor when he pleaded with me to come and get him early from school tomorrow.  "I don't want to go back to kindergarten, Mama.  It's so long!"  My heart ached for him and I wanted so badly to be able to say,"of course, baby, Mama won't make you stay at that long, long school!......"  But, of course, I didn't and I can't.  With as much empathy and compassion I could muster, I told him he'd have to go back, stay the whole day, and we'd have to come up with a solution to help him deal with his feelings.  Oh yeah, his feelings.  In passing tonight, he tells me that when he's at school, he sometimes has feelings of being nervous.  Curious, I asked him nervous about what exactly?  He said that it was different stuff...like being scared of his teacher (not a new thing with him when it comes to new situations)....also, scary stuff like nightmares  (well, this wasn't expected--never had that kind of fear at school).  I pray for Connor to always know that Jesus loves him, for these feelings to disappear, that he will find joy in his classwork and in his friends, that he will have energy, that he would feel the closeness of the Lord protecting him each and every day, and I pray that God will continue to sharpen his mind and shape his character throughout this difficult time.
• Today, for the first time, I got all the way to school to drop off Aidan and I realized that I'd let his lunch at home.  Blerg!  Yep, that was about 30 minutes on the road that I'll never get back.
• This morning was the first time that Aidan climbed out of his crib without our help.  I awoke today to them whispering in their room and later I realized that Aidan's voice was moving around.  I heard Connor say something about don't wake up mama and daddy.  Then I saw bright lights through my eyelids and realized they had flashlights.  When I sat up, I saw their creation--they'd stretched out practically every baby blanket that we owned and placed them end to end, making a road of sorts from our bathroom all the way into their room.  Sweet playing and loving each other's company that early in morning was music to my ears and warmed my heart.
• I am officially, for the first time ever, a member of a fantasy football league.  That's right.  Jump back!  I know practically nothing about the individual football players, but hey, what fun!  Oh, and my team name: Vamp from Savannah. tee hee hee

Lesson Plan Preview

I think that I'm starting a fun tradition on Fridays to record the lesson plans for Connor's class the upcoming week.  I love getting this sneek peek into his world away from us:

Spelling/Literature: In spelling, we will be discussing letter names and sounds. We will be focusing on the sounds of i, t, and p. In literature, we will be learning how to hold a book correctly, and to identify the title, author, and illustrator. This week we will introduce and discuss characters and setting. (All week this week Connor has been having fun rhyming words....a game that I was never able to coax him into playing.  I'm definitely seeing that the collective peer pressure of school instruction in this way is very positive for Connor) 

Unit Study: This week in Unit Study, we will be discussing Communities. We will discuss the different services and businesses within a community. We will introduce that communities around the world have similar characteristics. We will even be creating a model community within the classroom.  (I'm seeing this play out in a lot of questions for me and Richard about how we as a family fit into our community).

Math: In math, students will learn to count to 10 and write the numerals for these numbers, and to find one more or one less to solidify the counting sequence. This week we will be focusing on: knowing that objects can represent a set of objects up to 5 and fingers and toes together can represent up to 20; determining one more; understanding and showing the meaning of same and more; and knowing how many more. We will be using manipulatives and hands on activities to learn about numbers.  (This is one of the aspects of Connor's school that I love--getting the kids to think outside of the box and to complement their standard lessons with hands-on activities. 

 

Nature Study: This week, we will review the seven characteristics of living things (breathing, feeding, movement, growth, reproduction, excretion, sensitivity) and we will use these characteristics to identify objects as living or non-living. We will learn about the scientist Linnaeus, and how he created the Classification System. We will also introduce the five kingdoms of living things.  What can I say....I didn't get introduced to this til I was in 7th grade!  I know he won't be breaking down the genus and species of plants and such, but, really, wow!  I'm so excited that he's getting exposure in a structured way to this stuff, with his teacher applying what they learn (rather than what I'd do and just tell him and then leaving it for another topic).  I love school!

Bible: This week, we will be reading the stories of“Noah’s Ark” and “The Flood.” Please read these stories at home with your child, and have them narrate the story back to you.

Show and Tell: Show and Tell for this week will be free choice. The object must fit into your child’s backpack, with the backpack still able to be zipped up.  This should be fun to see what he'll bring.

Cherishing little boy's point of view

Just a quick peek into Connor's take on the world:

In the car after school, Connor tells me how his teacher took a light and a mirror and bent the light and made it shine onto the wall.  And, then how she used colors and bent the colors too and shone them on the wall.

I was astounded, thinking that his class was embarking on some pretty amazing physics experiments.  I was all,"Wow! Mrs. Maeyaert is really ambitious!"

As he kept describing how it worked, I finally figured out that he was talking about an overhead projector that they must've used that day.
Oh, the amazement and wonder of my little smarty-pants.

I love how his mind must've really studied that machine to figure out how the picture ended up on the opposite wall while his teacher drew maps of the world on it as they learned about oceans and continents.  It must've mesmerized him.  I love his curious mind.

Here's a picture he took--he's moved on from still-shots.  He wanted to take a few while he spun around to capture the motion.  What a kid!

Lesson Plans

Connor's teacher sent the parents a preview of next week.  Wow!  They are going to be busy little bees. 

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For the Week of August 20-24, 2012

Welcome to Kindergarten! We are so excited about this new year!

Snack Helper for this Week: Margaret

Snack Helper for Next Week: Miriam

Spelling and Literature: This week for spelling, we will be segmenting sentences into words, counting the words in a sentence, and segmenting words into syllables. In literature, we will begin an author study focusing on Robert McCloskey. We will be reading his works Make Way for Ducklings, Lentil, Blueberries for Sal, One Morning in May, and Journey Cake, Ho! We will be learning how to hold a book correctly, and to identify the title, author, and illustrator. In grammar, we will begin learning the sentence structure of a statement.

Unit Study: This week in Unit Study, we will be discussing Earth, the seven continents, and the four oceans. We will be learning about the compass rose and the directions north, south, east, and west. We will be learning a song about the continents and oceans. We will also begin learning about Communities. We will discuss the different services and businesses within a community. We will introduce that communities around the world have similar characteristics.

(Connor is going to LOVE this part.  And, it'll give him a chance to really use his compass)

Math: In math, students will learn to count to 10 and write the numerals for these numbers, and to find one more or one less to solidify the counting sequence. This week we will be focusing on composing/decomposing numbers through 10, one-to-one correspondence, pairing number names with numerals, ordering numbers 0-10, and understanding the concept of one more. We will be using manipulatives and hands on activities to learn about numbers. (He's waaayyy past counting to ten, but I'm sure there's a lot more to it when you figure in all that composing and decomposing and pairing that she talks about....Guess it'll be a while before they get to googoplex!)

Nature Study: This week, we will learn the seven characteristics of living things (breathing, feeding, movement, growth, reproduction, excretion, sensitivity) and we will use these characteristics to identify objects as living or non-living. (the boys will love the excretion part...hee hee)

Bible: This week, we will be reading the stories of“The Garden of Eden” and “Cain and Abel.” Please read these stories at home with your child, and have them narrate the story back to you.

Show and Tell: Please have your child bring a picture of something living and something non-living. The picture can be from the internet, a magazine, a drawing, or a photograph. Your child should be ready to share three (3) things about their Show & Tell with the class.
(After I told Connor what next week's S&T would be, he crinkled up his nose and said,"But Mama!  There are like thousands of living things...How can I pick only one?!"  Hold on there fella...)

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I'm so excited for him!

First day of kindergarten for Connor

I want to preserve all of today to look back on b/c I know these feelings of newness and excitment and nervousness will fade soon.

Connor started kindergarten today.  Boy, that sentence is packed full of emotion as I type it...might not read like it later, but let me tell you!

The lead-up to his big day was nothing short of overwhelming for me.  Really and truly, there was not much to actually do aside from buying school supplies, uniforms, shoes, getting to parent orientation and meet the teacher night.......well, I guess there WAS quite a bit of prep.  My emotional and physical state came to a giant head last week and the faucet turned on--full-blast.  But, once I got it out and saw how excited Connor was getting, I have been so excited for this day to get here.

Today, of course, my eyes wouldn't shut after 4am, while my little kindergartener slept soundly til I woke him at 7:10.

As I pattered around the house, made his lunch, got myself ready for work, I began to remember my own school mornings.  I don't really remember my first day of kindergarten.  I do remember my first day of 2nd grade (in a new school) very well.  There was me, little miss something, in a big room full of other someones and I knew nobody.  I remember very distinctly 'ordering' ice cream with lunch when I turned in my lunch money to the teacher.  I envisioned three scoops of glorious strawberry ice cream, topped by a bright red cherry.  Wha!!??I know, right??!!  Later, as I sat finishing what I'm sure was a very sad and forgettable cafeteria lunch, a solid brick ice cream sandwich CLUNKED onto the table beside me.  Well, it was strawberry....sigh...

I remember those familiar sounds while waking early on school days--the sound of my mama walking down the hallway, her make-up containers hitting the vanity tray as she got ready of a morning, the way the birds sounded as the sun peeked out between the trees, my ticking alarm clock on my nightstand, zippers, closet doors...
This morning, I wondered what Connor's sounds would be...what would he later remember of his school mornings. 

I sat on the edge of his bed and rubbed his back.  He grinned when he opened his eyes and saw me there.  I saw him remember what today was (he noticed the outfit that he'd taken out last night....yep, the child was so excited that he laid out all his clothes the night before, including his shoes.)

Breakfast was the same as almost every other morning.  Waffles with nutella. 

Aidan was so sweet about the whole thing too--he is really going to miss long days with Connor.  They started playing with a toy light sabre, and I teared up thinking about how there would be fewer and fewer mornings when they could just play on and on for hours. 

There was no drama getting to the car.  I think he was relieved to see other kids walking in with there parents--probably noticed that the other kids were nervous like him.  He took a little charge of us--kind of herded us ('come on mama, we need to go this way' and stuff like that).
As we walked into to the school building, I was so surprised that Connor walked on ahead of us...by himself!  It was just what I needed to see.

He was so proud to hang his backpack on his hook and put his lunch bag in his cubby.  Mrs. Maeyeart, his teacher, had play-doh for each child to play at their seats.  I could tell we were embarrassing Connor a little with all our pictures...but he really took it in stride and I think that I even noticed a little pride from him for us. 

Leaving.  Walking out was not tearful for me like I thought it would be.  I guess if he'd been sad or crying, I would never have made it out.  But, praise the Lord, he looked happy and proud of his little accomplishment..making it to his first day...getting here. 
I went back a couple times and peeked in the door (not crazy...all within like 5 minutes.  I just had to get one more look.).  He would feel me watching and turn, grin, and wave like 'I see you...okay...see you after school...sheesh'.

Oh, and we'd given him a special first-day gift.  A small, pocket-size compass.  He loves stuff like that, and he's enjoyed figuring out how to use it.  I told him that it was a symbol and was supposed to remind him while he's away from us at school that he is never lost as long as he has faith in Jesus...that He is always with him and will never lose him.  He's not let it out of his sight since he got it.  I love little boys.  Especially my little....nope, BIG boy :)

Pick-up:  I couldn't get to school fast enough to pick him up.  We were 20 minutes early.  I resisted the urge to go in and do a bit more peeking.  A few moms and dads walked up--I could tell they were trying to stay put too (one asked,"can't we go in?  are we just supposed to wait out here?!").  Finally, the troops came filing out behind the teachers.  Connor caught my eye behind the glass door and waved great big.  He was fine...in one piece...smiling...happy....whew!!

Now, my little chatterbox is anything but chatter-ey about what I want to hear about.  My strategy to get a few kindergarten tid bits out of him was to NOT ask directly.  I usually give him 5-10minutes of quiet in the car.  Finally, he tells me:

• it was pretty fun.  you know, it was pretty fast...like Mrs. Stephanie's and Mrs. Kelley's.
• you were right Mama...the teacher told us where to go. (he had been a little anxious about being able to find the bathroom and where to eat lunch)
• you know, we didn't even have naptime.  But, I'll still bring my taggie blanket and Old Puppy in my backpack everyday...just. in. case.
• well, I already made a friend.  (I asked what was his or her name).  It was a boy. (oh, well, what was his name?).  Well, I didn't ask him that!  I looked under the table and then he looked under the table and then we just kept doing that over and over...so, we're friends!

Aidan was glad to get big brother back home too.  He kept hugging and kissing him which made Connor crazy-annoyed.  Not to mention all the pictures I took (I've no regrets...no apologies from this here mama).

As I rehashed the day in my mind later, I smiled to myself thinking about how small he felt in my arms as an infant, the countless hours spent pacing the nursery trying to get him to nap, the days exploring the backyard and digging in the sandbox, the hundreds of thousands of hugs and kisses given and taken, sending him to time-out...and not sending him to time-out when I should've, making mama-mistakes, being rewarded with successes, praying for his soul and heart and character, and being there each time he did anything..for the first time........and, realizing I'm sending him alone for a big part of his day to learn, discover, wonder, and do things for the first time without me.  It is so hard and brings me so much pride at the same time.  He is my awesome, sweet, smart, and loving little boy--the best 5 year old I know.