Jack’s first day of kindergarten was a day of excitement, nervousness, sadness and joy. And that is just how I felt. Jack seemed to just be ready to go! His feelings seemed to center around excitement. He was ready to meet new friends and learn new things. Chris and I reflected back to the past, like we always do, and spent time thinking about how far Jack has come and how proud we are of everything he has overcome to make it to Kindergarten!! We felt nervous for him, wondering if he would have a hard time with his shorts button or if he would struggle to open his lunch box even though we practiced. We encouraged him to ask his new friends for help when he needed it, explaining that kids like to help each other and he might make friends that way. We didn’t want him to feel like he needed to rely on his teacher, Mrs. Poland for every bit of help he needed.
We sent him to school with his helmet scrubbed clean of all stickers and TONS of new stickers in his backpack so his classmates could help him decorate his helmet. That was my idea. A way to explain to the children that Jack wears a helmet most of the time to protect his head, but that he’s really no different than any other child, and that he would love the other kids’ help to make his helmet look cool. The idea was a hit and he came running out of school so excited and so happy to show me how great his newly decorated helmet looked. He had a great first day.
That evening Jack was a bit clingy and I loved the fact that he wanted to stay close to his mom after his long day of school. The overall transition to kindergarten went very well and Chris and I could not have been happier that he adjusted so well to the longer days compared to preschool. The feeling I had as he ran out of the school that day was so wonderful. I felt emotional, but so proud, and so happy for him. He is growing up and I am incredibly grateful to be his mom!!
No comments:
Post a Comment