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August 2009: Back-to-school reading
Separation, growth, worry, and wonder
One of my favorite fictional characters, Miles Vorkosigan, compared doing
any hard thing the second time to going on a second combat sortie. The
first time out, the young recruit has no real idea of what waits out
there. He goes out the second time with fears justified and made
concrete. This describes my experience with sending my daughters to
preschool. At first, they went cheerfully. Later in the year, they
realized Mama didn't stay the whole two hours; Teacher Peggy and the
playmates didn't always do things Our Way; the world was bigger than
our extended family of adoring pushovers. Drop-off time became notably
more complicated.
School is a big place. It's good to widen
our children's worlds. They should learn to Play Well With Others, and
that while our love is unconditional, good grades are not. But the
process is not always painless. Click here to view a list of suggested
reading for young children heading into preschool, kindergarten, or
middle school--each a different experience. There's even one for the
younger sibling waiting in the wings!
And check out this blog about two brothers--an eager kinder kid and a jaded older brother--with different takes on the start of the school year.
