For me the anxiety of the lead up to starting school was immense and since he initially settled in so well but then lapsed in weeks 2-3 with tiredness and the final understanding that this was a 5 day a week thing for the foreseeable future … it was not a joyous time … thankfully those days are past and he is now relishing in school and finding independence in school life and the friendships it brings.
We have plodded nicely over the last month or so fitting into school life and enjoying at Joshua’s new-found love of spellings and reading even if is incessant attempts at spelling everything he says first can get a little *cough cough* interesting to say the least … however it is lovely to see him develop into a really caring and sensitive little guy.
After a lovely half term our parents evening was scheduled for a Tuesday just after school but with Joshua’s first swimming lesson also booked for 4 o’Clock it meant a bit of a parenting tag team … Ollie collected Joshua from school and headed for the swimming baths while I stayed at school to see his class teacher and I have to say I was so pleased I got to see her.
Most parents expect there to be nice things to be said and don’t get me wrong there were lots of lovely things said about my little guy, however what made me prouder than how well he had settled and how well he was soaking up the learning environment was hearing how is friends with everyone and not selective like some can be when they start school.
There are some strong friendships already forming in his class that are obvious to see with parents friendships already established and sometimes it can be hard to find where you sit in social groups, so being one of the youngest in the class aged 4 when so many others are already 5 I was worried about him feeling like he fitted in, however there is certainly not that worry now, he plays with everyone and enjoys spending his time with lots of people and even tries to include other classmates when he can.
Don’t get me wrong it’s lovely to hear how he is doing academically but this parents evening I could not have been more prouder that his social interaction has helped others feel included ….. And that means more than anything else.
Well done my little man!
