5mcintyres: 4th Term

So we have begun the 4th term and all has gone well! This term runs 11 October - 17 December and we'll break for summer until February.

Calvin had his first day of Year 1 (aka 1st grade). He did great going into his new classroom and settled in quickly with a cool castle and other toys to play with while the other kids arrived. Because this is a "new" class, there are only 6 children in his class, however yesterday there were only 4 due to sickness. There will be more children that join them during the term that will celebrate their 5th birthdays and begin school, as Calvin did. Again, it's such a unique system (compared to what we are used to) but it's really effective in that the children get used to school with their 6 school visits and through kindie. Most of the kids have been at the kindie with Calvin so he is knows them well which helps make the adjustment so much easier. The downside, in my opinion, is some kids start school in the middle or even the end of a term and are walking into a class that has already formed circles and friendships. Now, Calvin gets to make friends from the beginning and add new friends gradually as the term carries on.

Calvin is getting wonderful attention and teaching from his fabulous teacher, Mrs. Mills-Smith. She has been teaching for many years but she has more spunk and energy than anyone else I know that is her age. She's very nice and attentive to the children and they listen and respect her very much. She even gave me a ring mid-morning to let me know that Calvin was doing just fine and had settled in nicely. How wonderful she took the time to do that! That certainly puts a concerned mommy at ease. Another example, Mrs. Mills-Smith asked if I'd keep Calvin's beloved silly bands at home because he tends to play with them throughout the day. So, before I left this morning I had to take them from him and kind of dreaded it because I knew he'd be sad. Much to my surprise, when I told him that Mrs. Mills-Smith asked me to take his silly bands home for safe-keeping, he turned them right over. No fuss or argument! I believe that only because I used those words did I avoid a fight. I'm so glad he feels comfortable.

Yesterday proved to be a typical Wellington day. We woke up to a downpour of rain and gales of wind. But, it stopped long enough for us to get in the car (thank you God!) but picked up again on the way to school. Once we arrived at school the rain subsided a tad, enough for us to walk inside without getting completely drenched. It was so cold though that we needed gloves and hats, which were tucked neatly in a cupboard at home. :) Note to self: Always keep spare gloves and hats in car, at all times! We got Calvin delivered to his room and by now the rain had stopped, the wind didn't follow suit.

Driving to and from school, it's such a sight to see the waves of the harbour when the wind is so strong. The salt water crashes over the side of the road, unrelentlessly, showering all passing cars in its briny existence. You can tell how calm or how rough a day will be according to the white caps in the harbour. It's just beautiful!

Anyway, back to the weather and school...I was able to stay home a bit until it was time to take Mary Katherine to kindie at 1:30. Beforehand, we headed to our favorite place, the library, to return and pick up new items. The weather still held out as far as the rain was concerned but the wind continued to make its presence known. After dropping off MaeMae and getting her settled, Caroline and I headed home for the 1 1/2 hours before we had to pick up Calvin.

Now, by the time 2:45pm rolled around we were driving to school with no rain. By 2:55pm, there was an opening in the sky and all the rain from the day had dumped itself onto Calvin, Caroline and I as we ran to the car, raincoatless (because I thought the rain had ceased) and freezing (there's nothing like the sideways rain that pelts you straight in the face because the wind is so persistent and strong.) By the time we got to the car, our heads and fronts were soaked. I felt so bad for Caroline because although I had her in her stroller with the cover down, the wind kept blowing it back so it was useless and the rain smacked her in the face so that she was dripping when I put her in the car.

Picking up MaeMae was better in that the rain had stopped again but when we got home just minutes later, it began to hail! I'm telling you what, this weather is as predictable as a woman! :) You can wake up to a downpour but by the end of the day the sun is shining and its as though a drop never fell from the sky.

Today, we bundled up in our coats, hats and gloves and took Calvin to school only to be welcomed with sunshine and warmer weather. At least we were prepared for anything! This morning we stayed with Calvin while they participated in "jump jam". This is a wonderful session the kids gather for in the auditorium and begin their exercises. They play fun, several fast-paced songs that have been choreographed with moves to get the kids up and moving. It's really cute and the kids have the dance moves down pat. The newer classes will take a little warming up to the idea but hopefully Calvin will soon participate in jump jam. He did watch and take it all in with his buddy, Blaine. I thought this was such a great idea! Fun, exercise and ready for the day.

In Calvin's first day, he drew pictures, wrote the alphabet and learned to read a simple book. Now I realize he probably memorized it and read the pictures but he was reading the words correctly while following along with his finger. He read for me in the car while we were waiting to pick up MaeMae and I was so impressed he learned to do that in one day. "I collect rings. I collect badges. I collect all sorts of things." was the gist of the book, but again because he could read the correct words on the correct pages blew me away. Every day, he is supposed to read and we log it in a "reading journal" from the school. When he reaches 25 days/nights of reading, he's awarded a sticker and so on. He's so excited about his "homework" and when I asked him if he'd like to do his homework first or play first, he said he wanted to do his homework first. :) He is going to learn so much this year! Ben and I are so happy he was able to get into school and we both feel so blessed the kids are doing so well in their new environment.