Back To School! {2016-2017}

The boys started school on August 17th. They weren't necessarily excited, but they didn't put up any resistance either. Andrew is continuing in the Portuguese immersion program for 2nd grade. He is excelling in his new language. It makes him feel special to know something that the rest of the family (minus Jonathon) doesn't. Since he is a middle child in every sense of the word, I think it is good that he feels special. At Back to School night, we met his new teachers. His Portuguese teacher is from Brasilia and seems very nice. He has lots of friends in his class and is actually in the same hall as last year. I think he will have another good year.

 2nd grade with Professora Stirling-D and Miss Lambson

Christian is actually at a new school this year. The CAS program split into two different schools to meet the needs of the district. They no longer have the money to bus the kids, but his new school is much closer to us, so it actually works out well. When we showed up to Back To School night, we were greeted by a Harry Potter themed classroom. Nothing could have been more exciting for that boy! He even got sorted into a house "table." He got Ravenclaw, which fits so well. They get house points for the good things they do, have Hogwarts journals to write in, and made their own quills. It was all very fun, and I think it was an excellent start to the year. His teacher seems very experienced and kind. It might be a little more challenging for him because this teacher focuses a lot on writing, history, and poetry. Last year was mostly STEM subjects, which are Christian's strengths. So, while it might add a bit of difficulty for him, I think it will be a great learning experience. He needs experience with all subjects and might find that he likes them more than he thought.

5th grade with Mrs. Metz

The first day of school started perfectly. The kids got up, got ready quickly, and we arrived at the schools a bit early. They knew where to go and seemed fairly confident. After I dropped them off at their classrooms, I went to the office at Christian's new school to check and make sure that everything was correct with his records being transferred. To my annoyance and horror, they told me that he was not registered and thus not on any of the roles. Grrr! I was so frustrated. Two weeks before this, I called the school district to make sure that I did not need to do anything else. The lady on the phone told me that his other school transferred all of his records to the new school, and nothing was needed from me. Obviously, she had no idea what she was talking about. The secretary at the school said that the CAS program sent the names and info they had to the new teacher, but the whole registration process had to be done again. I spent 20 minutes filling out paperwork, getting his immunizations copied, etc. Luckily, they let him stay at school and said they would try to get his records as soon as possible. I was grumpy about the whole situation, but none of it affected Christian, so he still had a great day. So, in the end, even though there was a small hiccup, the first day back was a success. I am looking forward to a great new year.