Willie's Kindergarten Days!

Esteemed Readers,

August 18th was a very important day for our family. Not only was it Willie's birthday, but also it was his first day of school!

Willie is attending a real school now. Here is how a typical day goes by:

He lines up outside with his class at 8:30. With the bell, they walk into the classroom. Then, they take out the folders from their backpacks and hang the backpacks in the coatroom. There is this folder ritual every morning. Their teacher, the ever-smiling lovely Mrs. Banks, checks the folders for homework and notes for the teacher. Afterwards, they go and take their places on the carpet. Subsequent to morning greetings, they stand up for the pledge of allegiance.

Below are the words of the original pledge. I included this for my international readers, since like myself, they may not be too familiar with this interesting American ritual...

"I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Today, with gradual additions, it reads like this:

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

So, as we can see, nation-state is alive and well, wherever we go...

After the pledge, the real stuff begins! They do a lot of reading exercises, sing along with the teacher, do writing and coloring. After each project, they pack up and put away their supplies behind their chairs in a very orderly fashion.

There are 23 kids in class. As I spent all morning with them today, I was amazed at how Mrs. Banks keeps on top of them all. She does this in a sweet but firm way. It's been only 4 days since the school started, but they all seemed to have internalized the rules and routines in the classroom. Kudos for Mrs. Banks! And she accomplished all this, despite the fact that her house flooded! I couldn't believe how she still could maintain such a positive spirit despite the $30,000 damage in her basement and an uphill battle with her insurance company. More kudos for Mrs. Banks!

Here are some lessons that I took from Willie's class today:

• In America, they really try to cultivate the kids as independent individuals very early on.

(There was one little girl in Willie's class, who cried for her parents during recess. No one paid attention to her, or tried to cuddle her. Eventually, I went by and tried to calm her down...)

• In America, rules are very important.

(Even when things seem disorderly, there is always an order and logic behind. The kids know where to sit on the carpet, how to sit, where to put their folders, how to browse books and read the pictures. In the end, good behavior yields pennies! The teacher gives a penny to good kids for saving in their penny jar.)

• In America, you need to eat your lunch fast!

(They have only 20 minutes for lunch. And this includes lining up, filling your tray, finding a seat, and opening your milk and other goodie bags. I was so impressed when I saw Willie filling up his tray and opening his of carton of milk all by himself!... And they give no straws!! (See the entry about independent individuals above) No babying around and drinking from straws in the lunch room. Today, Willie could eat just half of his meal (hamburger + baby potatoes) but finished all of his fruit (pineapple) and milk.)

• In America, elementary schools are run by women!

(Today, I barely saw 1 or 2 men around the school premises. The teachers were almost all women, the assisting staff were women, the involved parents (PTA folks) were women and the Principal is a really nice lady... In short, the elementary school is women's turf!)

Wishing you all a great Fall semester, and brilliant, independent students,

Academic Mommy