Tonight we went to Kindergarten Round-up at Alex Sanger
Elementary. This is where the parents go to meet the Principal (remember he is
your “pal”), the teachers and tour the school. We did this once already in the
fall but this was the “official” night and we wanted to go to get Vin excited about
it. The one thing he is looking most forward to is not having to take a nap.
Sanger is about 1 mile from our house in a neighborhood
called Forest Hills. It’s often called Big Forest Hills because there is also a
Little Forest Hills. Big Forest Hills is full of multi-million dollar homes and
the school is situated among them. This is not to say that those kids attend
this school but there has been an uptick since the recession. There is a strong
parent presence and lots of positive energy surrounding the school. This is the
most important thing to me because we already know lots of kids in our
neighborhood and Vin will go to school that first day and know other students.
I can already see car pools and lifelong friendships in the works. Kids who 20
years from now will come home from college, come to our house, walk in and call
me Mom. They types of friendships that I have and dearly cherish. It’s one of
those weird things we’ve encountered in this neighborhood. We live in the city
and yet we live in a small town.
The school has a dual language program which means that Vin
will spend half his day in a Spanish speaking classroom and the other half in English.
Reading and Math and are taught in English … Social Studies and Science are
taught in Spanish. Then they have a language of the day that alternates for
subjects like music and art. That is also a bonus that they have music, art,
p.e., and a garden.
They also have a 100% English program and anoter program
where Spanish speaking students who are learning English can opt for the
program that teaches them English. We’ve chosen the Dual Language Program.
Another exciting thing is the free Pre-K program that Reese
will participate in when he’s 3 or 4. This school goes to 5th grade and
so Reese will be in Kindergarten when Vin’s in 5th grade.
It goes without saying that they are growing up so fast. I
cannot believe that Reese got his first haircut and is just 5 weeks away from
his 1st birthday. They are both so sweet and kind and I’m trying to
keep them babies as long as possible but I can see them slipping away.
Up until a few months ago, I had Vin convinced that I had
the power to keep in 4 years old and could cast a spell to keep him from
turning 5. If only that were true.