time out Off to a good start
The Kindergarten transition goes smoothly LEA HANSON
T
he Kindergarten transition pains are mostly complete. During the first two weeks, people relentlessly asked how the transition was going. My response was usually something along the lines of, “It’s funny how bringing my child to a different location each morning at pretty much the same time can feel like such a difficult change!” And it was true. Even though we didn’t have to change our routine much—or at all—it felt really stressful. Plus there is the lunch, remembering to pack the morning snack, and knowing which “special” (P.E., Art, Media) she’s having that day for backpack packing purposes. Also it’s weird that I rarely interact with her teacher and my daughter tells me almost nothing about her day. “Who did you play with today?” “I don’t remember.” “What was the best thing that happened?” “Recess!” In pre-school I’d chat with her teacher every day, if even for ten seconds. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think there is something negligent happening in Kindergarten—and I’m no helicopter parent—yet it’s a funny transition. What I can see now, a few months in, is that this change is really great for my daughter’s developing independence. She gets to manage her day for the most part, and once I let that sink in a little bit, it felt pretty awesome. Really awesome, in fact. It makes me proud to see her confidently walk toward the playground each morning and find a friend to play with as they wait for the bell to ring. It’s cool to see her unpack her backpack each afternoon and organize its contents to prepare for the next day. She remembers her Friday Folder every Monday like a boss and she reminds me about assignments she has and when they are due. But since she basically tells me nothing on a daily basis, we were looking forward to our first parent/teacher conference 42
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this week. There wasn’t any sort of report card or assessment to review, but we were able to talk about behavior, adjustment, social skills, and such. Our child’s drawing and coloring abilities are basically the bomb, so we’ve got that aspect of Kindergarten covered and then some. She’s also legit at recognizing letters, knowing greater-than and less-than math, and can count to 100. We didn’t have a lot of questions about Kindergarten academics. We did have questions, however, about her friendship skills. Since she is a recovering member of a mean girls group, we want to support her in making a fresh
start at her new school as “a nice friend” while also making sure her teacher knows about her semi-shady past. Thankfully, her teacher assures us she’s off to a good start and isn’t mean to others nor does she exclude others purposefully (our primary expectations). The teacher did have a few reports of behavior that seemed to me to fall into the bucket of bossiness, but she explicitly noted she wasn’t concerned at this point. Phew. Everyone needs a fresh start once in a while and perhaps the transition to Kindergarten was just what this sassy girl needed.