The first day of kindergarten has finally arrived. Kenzie was excited to go and has had her new Barbie backpack fully stocked for a few weeks now. In Knox County, kindergarteners go to school on a "staggered schedule" for the first two weeks. This means that each kid only goes for one assigned day (with another 3-4 kids) to get them used to school. They also only go until noon these days. Furthermore, kindergarten gets out of school at 1:00 daily (almost 2 hours earlier than everyone else) for the rest of the year.
I find this to be totally unnecessary.
First of all, Kenzie has been at a real school for the past two years for a curriculum based preschool. She knows what school is. I understand that some kids are fresh out of the house with no preschool at all, but come on. Have they ever been to Sunday school? Or dance class? Or any organized activity at all? If you're five years old, you know how to play with other kids and how to do what you're told.
Second of all, this schedule is terribly inconvenient for working parents. School has already started back (college too) so there are no available Samantha's or summer camps. Daycares won't let you send your kid for 4 days only for 2 weeks only. And I really didn't want to use 8 vacation days. Fortunately, my Mom agreed to help me out so we have each driven to and from Crossville, over an hour away, twice this week. That's roughly 560 total miles. In 4 days. And we will do it again next week.
Anyway, I'm sure I'm not the first parent to think this is completely crazy, so I'll hush about it. Kenzie will be in kindergarten full time soon enough, so I'll deal with this bump in the road.
*stepping off of soap box*
I'm sure she will have lots of stories about today and I can't wait to hear them. You will be proud to know that I successfully walked out of the school with my head high rather than as a sobbing lump of sad Mommy.
I did kind of want to cry a little though.
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