Yesterday I was driving my son to his first day of Kindergarten. Big day. I threw all the kids in the van. The girls were singing and happy but I noticed the boy was quiet.
I wondered if he was worried or nervous so I watched him in the rearview mirror but didn’t ask.
About halfway to school he asks, “Dad, what’s the last grade?”
“12th,” I say.
“Ugh. I wish I was in 12th grade,” he sighed.
Something tells me the next twelve years or so are going to be an uphill climb with this one.
September 10, 2010 at 5:55 am
Man….this almost made me cry. My kids are grown now, but it all came flooding back. This is a kid I'd have had to hug. I hope he had a wonderful first day to relieve the weight of those 12 years looming in his future, and came home with a big smile on his face. For his sake as well as Dad's.
September 10, 2010 at 10:56 am
You have 13 years ahead, not 12.
September 10, 2010 at 1:58 pm
I loved this post for a couple of reasons. I just had daughter's start Kindergarten and first grade this year. My first grader is already wanting to be in high school. I supposed by the time I finish this comment, they will probably be grown up. People were right about them growing up to fast. Good luck and God Bless with your son. How did he like his first day of school anyways?
September 10, 2010 at 1:59 pm
LOL.
Ugh indeed.
When I was finishing my Masters work my students asked what grade I was in and I told them it was 20th…might have been 21st…can't remember. Now I homeschool my kids, so I'm STILL in school just about every day 🙂
Cute kid.
My little guy started Kindergarten, too.
September 10, 2010 at 3:07 pm
My youngest child is in 11th grade now. Fortunately the eldest and his wife have given us 2 grandsons thus far!
Tempus Fugit.
September 10, 2010 at 3:58 pm
I can remember being in Kindergarten and thinking "I wish I was almost done." So yes… it could be a long road!
September 10, 2010 at 5:58 pm
My kid tried to commit suicide on the way to kindergarten. He got away from me in a parking lot and started running; when I caught him and stopped shaking, I asked what he thought he was doing, and he told me he wanted to get hit by a car so he wouldn't have to go to school.
Four hours later he ran out of his classroom with a big grin on his face, and shouted, "Thank you Mommy for signing me up for this! I love kindergarten!!!'
September 10, 2010 at 7:17 pm
We're homeschooling our eight-year-old Aspie son this year. Last year at public school was a mess, and he's gotten used to teachers accommodating him when he refuses to do his work, so we have some major catching up to do. I wish we'd started sooner with him. We're at the tail-end of our first week of homeschool, and I have much more to learn yet about homeschooling kids with Aspergers. His younger sister, who I homeschooled last year for Kindergarten and is now in (homeschool) first grade, is doing so well, it's looking like it won't take long for her to overtake him in math, reading and writing. I ache for my son (even when I want to smack him for the whining, complaining and stalling tactics). He's a smart kid but averse to anything that he sees as work. He ran circles around his second grade teacher and the "Autism Spectrum team" of so-called experts, and it got to the point where they just did what they could to keep him quiet and out of the way, so the teacher could teach the other kids. I cannot tell you how it felt when his teacher told us that he was contributing nothing to the class.
He does better when the workload is light, and as long as he can show that he understands the work (say, in math), I don't mind cutting back on the repetitive review work, but he doesn't see the point of doing anything that isn't intimately connected with his narrow and obsessive interests. I can accommodate him to a point, in this regard, but I can't make everything in his curriculum about locks, keys and police work.
But then, who said parenting – or homeschooling – was supposed to be easy, right? And how many eight-year-old boys tell their parents "I love you" and offer hugs several times a day, just because?
September 10, 2010 at 11:00 pm
My son is starting Pre-K on Monday.
When my daughter started two years ago, my knees were buckling, as I worried about her. She was, and is, a very gentle soul.
This Monday, I will be more worried about how the school will hold up after my son arrives.
September 11, 2010 at 12:45 am
Kids shouldn't have to dread learning. Thats why we homeschool.
September 11, 2010 at 3:56 am
LOL… very cute! I remember being a senior in high school and overwhelmed and thinking… "Gee, I wish I were in Kindergarten!"
September 11, 2010 at 8:04 pm
How come you're not homeschooling?
Just asking! I thought most Catholics in America did that…
Maria (Portugal)