"I'm going to school today, school today, school today..."
We had such a great experience with our Mommy & Me class at Emerson last year that we decided to do it again this year! Our first day was this past Tuesday.
As soon as I told Lucy we would be going back to school, she was excited about it.
It's a little bittersweet, since some of our good friends from last year
aren't in our same class this year, but on the other hand, some of our closest friends from the neighborhood are in our
class, which is awesome! She was
excited as we pulled into the parking lot, and got even more excited
when we parked and she noticed Ivette and Ethan getting out of the car next to us.
I was uncertain as to how she would do, given that we've been out of the school routine all summer. I was a little nervous that she might not take to the separation part of class well, but remained optimistic and hoped for the best. When we arrived, Lucy gave Teacher Kathy (the same teacher we had last year) an apple, and I made us brand new name tags for this year. Lucy couldn't wait to go outside to play!
The first part of class is circle time, where we sing songs, dance, and play musical instruments. Lucy remembered the songs and had fun participating. So did newbie Bregan. :) At one point, Lucy and B decided to hold hands. Alicia and I died. It was the cutest!
Circle time is followed by snack time. Two classmates were celebrating birthdays this week, which meant cupcakes...and icing!
And before you get too excited, she still doesn't eat cupcakes. She licked the frosting, which smeared all over her face and neck. As per our usual M.O., Mommy got to enjoy the cupcake (chocolate, which was very tasty).
After snack time, the kiddos get to play outside for an hour, while the grown-ups go inside for discussion. (This is a program run through an adult education center, so technically the parents are the students.) For the first few weeks, we buddy up with another parent-child duo- one adult remains outside with both kids for half an hour, then we switch. It made perfect sense that Alicia and I would buddy up, since the girls are comfortable with each other's moms. It worked wonderfully- both girls did great! They played with and without each other, without missing a beat (or their mommies). Yay for BFFs at school!
All the kids did great, even the ones who hadn't been through the routine before. Naturally, all the moms were happy (and relieved) campers. :) Teacher Kathy warned us that this may not be the case next week, but we can still hope for a smooth transition.
After play/discussion time, we reconnect with the kids and all go inside for either art or story time. The "olders" do art first in one room, while the "youngers" have story time with Teacher Kathy in the other room, then we switch. (A big difference from last year is that last year, Lucy was one of the younger ones, whereas she's in the older group this year.)
We can choose to either leave after art and story time or stay to have lunch. We decided to stay. Lucy eats lunch at home, but we stayed so she could enjoy a snack with her friends. It's a nice time to be able for everyone to socialize.
It was a great first day, and I look forward to the rest of the year. We have a few more friends on the wait list to get into the class if/when anyone drops out (which will inevitably happen), so we look also look forward to when that time comes. In addition, our favorite aide, Miss Cate, is currently out of the country, but will be back next semester, so we will definitely be looking forward to her return.
Due to massive budget cuts, this program is the last of it's kind left in the city. It's been around a long time, with great, experienced teachers, and with a cost of a mere $50 per semester, it's the best deal in town! We are SO fortunate to have gotten a spot this year!
Yay, school*!
* We refer to this class as "school," even though it isn't exactly the same thing. So when you see references to school, you know this is what I mean.
 |
| First day of Emerson, year 2 - September 6, 2011 |
I was uncertain as to how she would do, given that we've been out of the school routine all summer. I was a little nervous that she might not take to the separation part of class well, but remained optimistic and hoped for the best. When we arrived, Lucy gave Teacher Kathy (the same teacher we had last year) an apple, and I made us brand new name tags for this year. Lucy couldn't wait to go outside to play!
The first part of class is circle time, where we sing songs, dance, and play musical instruments. Lucy remembered the songs and had fun participating. So did newbie Bregan. :) At one point, Lucy and B decided to hold hands. Alicia and I died. It was the cutest!
Circle time is followed by snack time. Two classmates were celebrating birthdays this week, which meant cupcakes...and icing!
And before you get too excited, she still doesn't eat cupcakes. She licked the frosting, which smeared all over her face and neck. As per our usual M.O., Mommy got to enjoy the cupcake (chocolate, which was very tasty).
After snack time, the kiddos get to play outside for an hour, while the grown-ups go inside for discussion. (This is a program run through an adult education center, so technically the parents are the students.) For the first few weeks, we buddy up with another parent-child duo- one adult remains outside with both kids for half an hour, then we switch. It made perfect sense that Alicia and I would buddy up, since the girls are comfortable with each other's moms. It worked wonderfully- both girls did great! They played with and without each other, without missing a beat (or their mommies). Yay for BFFs at school!
We also love that we have other friends in class like Ivette and Ethan and Marie and Gabby. Makes for a really fun day at school!
All the kids did great, even the ones who hadn't been through the routine before. Naturally, all the moms were happy (and relieved) campers. :) Teacher Kathy warned us that this may not be the case next week, but we can still hope for a smooth transition.
After play/discussion time, we reconnect with the kids and all go inside for either art or story time. The "olders" do art first in one room, while the "youngers" have story time with Teacher Kathy in the other room, then we switch. (A big difference from last year is that last year, Lucy was one of the younger ones, whereas she's in the older group this year.)
We can choose to either leave after art and story time or stay to have lunch. We decided to stay. Lucy eats lunch at home, but we stayed so she could enjoy a snack with her friends. It's a nice time to be able for everyone to socialize.
It was a great first day, and I look forward to the rest of the year. We have a few more friends on the wait list to get into the class if/when anyone drops out (which will inevitably happen), so we look also look forward to when that time comes. In addition, our favorite aide, Miss Cate, is currently out of the country, but will be back next semester, so we will definitely be looking forward to her return.
Due to massive budget cuts, this program is the last of it's kind left in the city. It's been around a long time, with great, experienced teachers, and with a cost of a mere $50 per semester, it's the best deal in town! We are SO fortunate to have gotten a spot this year!
Yay, school*!
* We refer to this class as "school," even though it isn't exactly the same thing. So when you see references to school, you know this is what I mean.
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