First day of first grade

Ian and I went for his "meet the teacher" session last week. He was excited to see his new classroom, see some kids, and meet his new teacher Ms. Boutwell (as in about well). The teacher talked a lot about reading and how if my kid doesn't know how to read now he will by the end of the year. Ian and I kind of just looked at each other because he's currently reading Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone - slowly, but with great accuracy. Ian's schedule this year is:

8:55-9:05 Announcements 9:05-11:00 Shared reading and guided reading groups 11:00-11:45 Writing and Calendar Math 11:45-12:35 Lunch and Recess (lunch is 11:50-12:20) 12:40-1:40 Math 1:40-2:10 Science and Social Studies 2:10-2:55 Resource (Art, Music, PE twice a week) 3:00-3:15 D.E.A.R (Drop everything and read) and Dismissal

My kid gets 15 minutes for recess (12:20-12:35pm) every day and twice a week he gets P.E. for 45 minutes. Otherwise he's sitting and learning. I'm a grown up and that day looks taxing to me. Thankfully, when he gets to Jenna's in the afternoon, she throws them outside, but it's still rough. I don't see Ian until 5:30pm. With no naps at school, he is exhausted by 7:30pm and asleep by 8:30pm at the latest. He's up between 6:30 and 7am every morning.

I offered to take him to school this morning because he had two large bags of supplies for the classroom in addition to his backpack. I wanted to take his picture in front of the house but he suddenly looked unhappy. He told me his smile was awful. This was after he suddenly felt sick at the breakfast table and was slow to get out of bed this morning despite popping awake at 6am all summer.

I told him he looks great and I love his smile. It looks a lot like mine in that you can tell we're happy if our eyes disappear behind our cheeks. I asked him if he was nervous about school. He nodded yes.

"But Mom, they're going to have hard math!"

I assured him that he was brilliant and that the math would not be too hard for him. I told him no one was attacking him for how he feels and it's perfectly normal to be nervous about starting something new. "It happens to me all the time and I'm a grown up. But all the chemicals that make you excited and scared are basically the same. So take it as a good sign that you're body is working just fine and go for it. You'll do great."

He smiled a little and climbed into the Jeep. We drove the 3/4 mile to school with his leg hanging out, his eyes closed in the wind, his shaggy hair blowing all over. (He wants to grow his hair long like his new friend Kieran, so no back to school haircut this year.) I pulled up to the school, handed him his bags and called out "I love you!" to him.

I hope the school rested up all summer so they are ready for him. He's a lot of kid but worth it.