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Tuesday, August 16, 2011

First Day of School

The first day of school always gives me stomach butterflies. Each year I was in school myself (and I went to school for MANY MANY years) I got that familiar tilt-a-whirl feeling, and now that my children are in school, I get it again.

I still don't know what I'm afraid of.

Handing over two children to the public school system is not easy. My girls have had good teachers so far, but they are good teachers with twenty-five other students. My oldest excels in this environment; my second-oldest steels herself for it. It will take most of the year for my second-oldest to unclench from the unfamiliarity of it all, and by then the school year will be almost over - almost time to adapt to a new class all over again.

My sister, a homeschooling mother of five (soon to be six!), tells me wrily that she wants her kids to attend Utopia Academy, a school with all the benefits of both homeschooling and public school, with none of the drawbacks of either. If someone can tell me where to register, I'll happily wait in line. Camp out all night if I have to.

But it looks like this is the best I'll get for now. Stomach butterflies and prayer, and only twenty years to go.

6 comments:

  1. I know exactly how you feel. Exactly.

    Sigh.

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  2. I'm doing the public school 1st day thing for the very first time in about 2 weeks as my oldest starts kindergarten. And as for "the very first time", I really mean that; I was homeschooled and went to Christian schools all the way through. Yikes.

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  3. We're still 3 weeks from the first day of school, for which I am grateful. *I* have to steel myself for the school year!

    Here's my utopian school: http://undertheponderosa.blogspot.com/2010/11/beggars-would-ride.html

    http://undertheponderosa.blogspot.com/2010/11/if-wishes-were-airplanes.html

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  4. I'm still reeling from sending my son to half-day preschool. it's only twice a week, but he's already missed a long morning walk with us where we saw a CAT AND A BIRD.
    It was very relaxing for me to have him out of the house, but I missed him. Maybe I should homeschool. AHHHHHHHHhhh.

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  5. Our First Day was last week. I have one in public school and since my younger is 5 days too young for Pre-K this year, we are doing homeschool preschool. (Very homeschool Lite). I'm enjoying my one year of being an educationally-blended family. ;)

    Stomach butterflies and prayer. Absolutely and yes, yes, yes.

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  6. Anonymous8/16/2011

    I always get butterflies too. I even get them midyear. But so far, they seem to be surviving just fine, including a couple of years with less-than-stellar teachers and crowded classrooms. One might even say they are doing well, these 3 teens of mine.

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