We applied to 3 progressive education schools, The Open Classroom, Ventura Charter, and CAPE. It's so important to us that Logan is in a good school that will foster a lifetime love of learning. As kindergarten approaches the thought of sticking my little boy in a desk for 5 hours made me sad. Thankfully there are 3 schools in Ventura county who feel the same way. Learning is all about experiencing the world around you. Doing more and sitting less.
The application process has been tedious. Lots of tours, meetings and paperwork. The deal with these schools is that admission is 100% lottery based for incoming students. so we applied and waited. Mama is not patient so this was/is hard.
Two days ago, we got a call that Logan had received a spot at The Open Classroom in their lottery. Phew. I was worried we wouldn't get into any of the schools. So yesterday, Logan had his visit at the school to meet his potential teacher and classmates. Overall the visit went smoothly. Logan was glued to me for the first hour. He was so nervous.
He isn't sure he wants to leave the YMCA or not have his grandma as his teacher or have new friends. I'm not so sure either. I'm sad that my little boy is leaving the security and comfort of preschool and moving into the big, scary, impersonal public school system. I feel guilty that we cannot afford private school and more specifically Catholic school. My husband is my living proof that the public school system can be good. I have friends who are public school teachers and they are good, caring women. I pray logan gets teachers like that. Im scared of the many kids my baby boy will meet. I want him to make good, true, friends (with good manners and angelic behavior, pretty please!). I feel thankful that we have alternatives to traditional education available to our children. I also feel proud that my boy is growing up, that he's smart, and that he is good.
Anyway, back to the visit. After about an hour, Logan started to perk up. He enjoyed watching the kids. At center time he was put into a group and rotated through the 4 centers. He did great, as long as mommy was near. I was proud. He watercolored a tree. He heard a story about sharing written by a queen. He drew a robot and then wrote some words. He drew some fruits and vegetables and joined in on a discussion about nutrition. I couldn't help but think how teeny tiny he looked in comparison to the other kids. Logan is a dinkbot but throw him in a k1 combo and he looks like a baby. Teacher Scott buddied him up with a kindergartener named Truman. Truman took Logan to play at recess after they had some popcorn for snack. Towards the end of the day, Logan was comfortable. He was laughing, joking and chatting with the other kids.
We're still waiting to hear from the other 2 schools on whether or not he got a spot. We'll make our decision once we hear.
It seems like just the other day we were anticipating preschool and now we're almost finished. I cannot believe it.
