I am "that Mom"

Today Bob and I took Superkid to tour the school where he will go to kindergarten next year. This was a big deal for me, both because our firstborn will be in kindergarten and because the school we went to is very close to my idea of a "dream school" for him. I admit that the last few months I have been a tad neurotic over the whole school thing. Not completely insane, but a bit over the top nonetheless.

To make a long story less long, we had some concerns about the neighborhood public school he currently attends for preschool. I mean no negative reflection on them, because it is a decent school and I know the staff work very hard. It is basically a solidly mediocre school and does a solidly average job. Superkid, however, is not an average child. I say this without conceit because people I like and respect and count on to tell me the truth tell me it is so. My little man is very bright, and very active and very inquisitive. He wants to know everything about everything, and then he wants to tell you why and how he learned it. My college degree is in early childhood education, so I can usually find ways to keep him engaged and intellectually stimulated. When I can't, his behavior spirals down down down like water in a toilet and then things are sad and ugly in our house until he's suitably challenged again.

So anyway, neither Bob nor I felt comfortable with the regular school in our neighborhood but we weren't sure what else we could do for him. Private schools are not in our budget, besides being out of sync with our desire to support public education as best we can. And while our district does offer choice enrollment and some special programs, none of the schools available were close to our home. Community involvement is important to us, and convenience is not to be ignored when there are 2 younger children for me to juggle as well. So we applied to a few places nearby--most specifically to a public charter school in our neighborhood--and waited to see what happened. The charter school has many more applicants each year than it has students, and I was told we would only be called by the charter school if his name came up in the lottery they hold. I must have heard the date wrong, because I thought the time had long since passed for the call to come. So when they called me last week to say they had a spot for him I was shocked, and then very excited. This school is academically sound, so he will get the basic skills and knowledge he needs for reading and writing and such, but it uses a less conventional curriculum model to teach them those things, and I love their approach. There will be much more time outside, and doing lessons in and about nature and more "real world" examples to learn from. And they go camping. Even in kindergarten. I love these things because Superkid loves to be outside and loves to learn how the world as a whole works together and loves to be "hands-on" in his learning. And I love it because several friends of mine, who are teachers or who work with schools in some aspect, have all told me "Superkid would do so well there, and so would Wonderboy."

So now I don't have to be "that Mom" about his school placement anymore because he'll be in our neighborhood, but still get his educational needs met and I won't have to sell my soul to pay for it. Yay!!(hands clap for joy and cheesy smile appears on face) Maybe next time I should just do my research, fill out my paperwork and then patiently wait to see how God will meet my needs huh? Someday I'll learn.