Kindergarten Graduation

Well, here it is mid-summer, and just realized that our kindergarten graduate did not have his big day properly documented!  I guess things got a bit busy the first of summer.

I actually did a bit of organizing with the kids paperwork from the past year, and came across this poem that Luka's teacher handed to us during orientation.

First Day of Kindergarten

Everyone has a "first day"

when they feel sad and all alone.

It can be so scary

when you're out on your own.

And I know that a d"fist day"

can be full of doubts and fears.

But they're full of new beginnings.

Take my hankie, dry your tears.

You'll find lots of things to do and you'll probably make new friends.

I promise we'll be together

when the school day ends.

Here comes the teacher,

blow your nose and be brave.

Come on now and wipe your eyes, 

this is no way to behave.

We'll good morning teacher.

We really must beg your pardon.

No, MOMMY doesn't always act this way,

But it's my first day of kindergarten!

While I didn't necessarily have all the tears, every parent can relate to milestone being met when you let that child walk through the doors of the school, the backpack so big it hangs to their knees so they can barely walk.

For the most part, Luka did have a good year in school.  We had a few classmate issues to deal with; I don't like to use the word "bullying," but in essence, there was one little boy who really wanted to be friends with Luka and just didn't have the skills to go about it the right way.  It's so hard to see your child have to go through that, knowing that there is only so much you can do, but hoping you give him just enough confidence to walk back in there the next day and face the concern.

While Luka was certainly a bit ahead of the game with his reading and writing skills, I did meet with Mrs. Ledden at the beginning of the year to help understand her techniques for ensuring he did not get bored when they were learning the letter 'A'. While I think she did find ways to challenge him, he was most intrigued by the social studies.  I don't think I will ever forget the day he came home with the following story, yelling at the top of his lungs:

Mom, you just won't believe this.  Oh my gosh!  There was the king, like a REAL king, and he got to tell EVERYONE what to do all the time.  And then, the people started fighting because they didn't like the king, and then there was a flag, and at the end of the war, OUR flag was still flying, and WE WON! WE WON!  Can you believe it?

I've never heard the story of the Revolutionary War told quite like that, but it was clear that he was thoroughly enjoying learning about it and that is what matters!

At the end of the school year, the kindergartners put on quite the performance, called "Mighty Oaks From Little Acorns Grow."  The music teacher, sadly who retired this year, just did a phenomenal job with these kids.  (She would often let Luka "perform" his piano songs in front of the class.)  They sang their little hearts out, with motions to every song - at least 10.  It was pretty impressive.  They were dressed up as little trees!

Here is a video link to a few moments from the program: http://youtu.be/yt9pblvpC-o

In any case, a huge congratulations to Luka for completing this milestone!