Back to School

 It has been 5 months since the kids have been in school.  Two months of e-learning followed by 3 months of summer is a long time to be away from the classroom.  And although I had some anxiety and reservations about the return to school, my kids were so excited and ready to be back with friends and teachers.  

Staley was very ready to return to school.  Fourth grade has so much going for it--drama club, safety patrol, news team, the living museum.  Staley has been looking forward to 4th grade since she started at Davenport.  She was excited to have Mrs. Mickna as her teacher as we have heard really good things about her.  Mrs. Mickna always does a science fair each year with her class which Staley is very excited about.  Like last year, Staley experienced some disappointment when none of her closest friends were in her same class.  This was amplified when her 3 very best friends all ended up in one class together without Staley.  There were some tears, but Staley is confident and adaptable.  I reminded her that each year of school has brought her a new good friend from her class that she hadn't known before.  She was still excited for the school year and was pleased on the first day when she had one friend that she had hoped might be in her class.  Here's hoping for a new good friend and a great school year!

Mrs. Mickna and Staley at Meet the Teacher Night

Not only did Staley have to pick out her first day of school outfit and earrings...

...she also had to pick out her first day of school mask.

Adelie thrives on being with others, so she was most looking forward to getting to spend time with friends.  She had hoped to have Staley's second grade teacher (Mrs. King), but was excited about Mrs. Khattar when she found out a few of her good friends would be in her class with her.

Adelie and Mrs. Khattar

And of course she chose a mermaid shirt for her first day.

Shockingly, instead of her Ariel mask, she went with Moana for the first day of school.

Briggs starting Kindergarten was the most stressful for me during these uncertain times, but he couldn't have been more excited.  And when he found out that he got Mrs. Doty for his teacher, he was THRILLED.  Since both girls also had her, Briggs is very familiar with Mrs. doty, her classroom, and her classroom pets.  That familiarity was so nice for him, as well as for me.  He also has a large number of kids from his preschool in his class, including a couple of his good friends.  I signed him up to start the year doing half-day Kindergarten, but with his enthusiasm, we might have to switch to full days sooner rather than later.

Briggs and Mrs. Doty

My big Kindergartener, ready for his first day of school.

Although Dava is not in his class this year, Keiko is.

This school year may look a little different.  There are masks and social distancing and assigned seats in the cafeteria.  There is earlier dismissal time and closed drinking fountains and new birthday treat rules.  There are smaller class sizes and increased e-learning preparation.  But there are many things that are still the same.  There are great teachers who are excited about the year and ready to love and teach my kids.  There are old friends to see again and new friends to make.  There is an excitement about learning (especially for my big and little), and the anticipation of fun things throughout the school year.  We are so blessed by our school district, and I'm so hopeful that we will have a safe, healthy, and in-person school year.