Today I met with Emma Vance’s teacher for my very first parent-teacher conference. #milestone #proudparent
There were no big surprises, surprisingly. It seems that the funny, sunny, independent, curious tinker fairy that we have wandering around Amityville has shown her true colors at school as well. I often worry and wonder about whether or not she’s being the little girl we know at home when she’s apart from us because when we have playdates, she tends not to talk or interact with the other kids as much as I’d expect; she’s more curious and observant when with other kids than she with us. I suppose over the course of a school year, though, she was bound to be herself. :) The words “free-spirited” and “independent” were used liberally (as is to be expected) — and learning to follow directions is on our to-improve list. Like I said, no surprises!
Along with Emma Vance’s evaluation was a list of things to work on in order to prepare her for the 2s class she’ll enter next fall. (Which, by the way, is two days a week! She’ll be in school TWO days a week! I can’t even begin to imagine what that freedom looks like for me…) Here’s what we’ve got to work on this summer:
- Climbing stairs. Check. How about climbing tables? Bookcases? Toys? What about chairs? Barstools? Toilets? Cabinets? Toilets onto cabinets? She can also climb boxes…and crib siderails…and coffee tables. And onto the couch. And by “the couch,” I mean the “any piece of furniture that might work as a slide.” Oh, and don’t forget onto our king bed, into cars and up chain link fences. I think that about covers it! :)
- Using a cup. Oh, she’d like that. She’d really like that! In fact, given the chance, she’d ditch that sippy cup so fast. This should be an easy one to mark off the list. Wait a minute. Pause. You mean use a cup without spilling 90% of its contents onto herself and the floor? Well, that’s a whole different story…
- Washing hands by herself. This is perhaps one of E.V.’s favorite things to do! She always begs, “Hands? Soap?” when I turn on any sort of faucet, and giggles, “Wash! Wash! Wash!” as she scrubs her tiny, dirty hands. (Why are kids’ hands so gross all the time??) Whether or not it’s an effective wash, well that remains to be seen. Maybe we try the whole “sing your ABCs while you scrub” thing?
- Sharing and taking turns. Um, maybe we can ask her to share her toys with Cricket? However, somehow I think that Cricket will be much less demanding of a playmate than the kids in her class next year…
- Colors and shapes. Beyond “heart” and “circle” (and, yes, “heart” counts as a shape, especially if you’re a girl who loves all things girly), we’ll have to work on that one. As for colors, she knows a lot of them (our little artist), but she has an affinity for blue, meaning that anytime you ask her, “E.V., what color is this apple/banana/dog/tree?” she always says, “Blue.” If you keep prodding her, she’ll reluctantly give you the right answer, but it seems to steal a little bit of her soul each time she admits that apples aren’t, in fact, blue. Maybe instead of working on colors, we’ll work on what’s real and what’s imaginary? ;)
Overall, I’d say we can accomplish everything on her to-do list this summer — and still manage to have some time for swimming and playing! ;)