Back to school

Tonight was Back-to-School night. We got to meet the PTO president, the principal, and sit in our child's classroom and listen to his teacher give a shpeel. Is that how it is spelled? Shpeel. I think not. Whatever.

Here's what I learned at Back-to-School Night:

1) I have not received any information. This is because our district is "paper-free"...and when I signed up for the district list-serve, I apparently didn't actually sign up. So my lack of info is my own damn fault. Although Jeff did it again when we got home and showed me how it is kind of f-ed up...so not completely my fault.

2) Our district is paper free...their big push to be more environmentally friendly. They have recycling in every room, send home almost no papers, etc. But as I walked around the school to get to the front door (it was really really crowded, and we had to park in the back), I noticed that the 30 year old "temporary" trailers have insulation falling out of their roofs and siding molded and peeling and with big gaping holes showing. Perhaps we should spend less time setting up our list serve and more time maintaining the facilities...because I'm pretty sure their heating and cooling bills must be MONSTROUS.

3) Andrew's class has 27 students in it. The AM class has 28. That means there was the potential for how many parents at Back-to-School night? Packed into teeny tiny kindergarten chairs. It was comical. And Andrew's teacher handled it like a pro. She also reassured us that she has a full time assistant teacher (who wasn't there last night because of illness), and they have been told that no more students may be added to the classes. As in, if a new student moves into the district, they will be bussed to another elementary school for Kindergarten. I have my doubts about that, but it sounds nice.

4) Andrew's teacher also addressed how she is going to be sure that the quiet kids don't get lost in the shuffle of this huge class. To illustrate how not all the kids are intimidated by the large numbers, she told a story of a student who shared his summer vacation almost too well...talking and talking and talking. After the presentation, I went up to offer my assistance, and she told me that she was actually talking about Andrew. How ironic that I was the most vocal parent at the Back-to-School night...at least she knows where he gets it from.

5) My husband and I are quite different (shocker). I was asking questions about the assistant and their reading program (I am a little worried it is Whole Language based...she didn't give me a satisfactory answer) and just one other thing. 3 comments/questions. Which was about 2 more than any other parent, but still? I didn't think that was too bad. Jeff apparently was fighting the urge to kick me or step on my toes to get me to stop talking. Luckily for me, his lower extremities were paralyzed by sitting in a kindergarten chair.

6) God bless Kindergarten teachers. Just describing their short short day makes me tired. Imagine getting 27 5 year olds to come in the classroom and take out their folders and get out any papers. Imagine one child needing the restroom, so all the children need the restroom. All 27 of them. Imagine helping 27 children get into their snacks. Imagine listening to 27 five-year olds describe their summer vacations. Imagine leading 27 five year olds who have NO CLUE down to the library or the music room. She was saying that she has to pay close attention, because they'll just follow anyone...just leave the line and follow another teacher if she doesn't watch. Children leave a sweater behind...and have no idea if it belongs to them. 27 of them. Just imagine. It is why I chose to teacher older grades...and that was too much for me. ;)

7) I went into teaching because I love schools. I walked through the brightly painted hallways and smelled the industrial cleaners and wanted to start teaching tomorrow. It has been TEN YEARS since my first year of teaching, when I had my back-to-school night with 2 crying parents and no books and no desks (they forgot to order them for my classroom). TEN YEARS since I wanted to drive off the road in depression and hating the parents who hated me and the principal who called my classroom a "jail cell" and gave me no support etc etc. I was a MISERABLE teacher..and yet one stroll through a school and I'm drooling to work there again. What the HELL is wrong with me? Talk about no self-awareness. ;)

Anyhoo...I enjoyed back to school night. The PTO had their tables set up in a horrible spot...I couldn't even make my way back to the corner table. So I managed not to get on any committees or anything ;) I didn't get a chance to check out the library, because the line to get back to the PTO table was blocking the door. Also? My curmudgeon husband probably would have died of embarrassment if I'd dragged him in there and started looking at their collection. He is so ashamed of me. ;) That's why he keeps me pregnant and barefoot at home. Except there will be no more pregnancies...so he will soon have to deal with me being unleashed into the general public. Poor guy.