Boasting

My son starts school in August and the school had an afternoon event last month for the children to meet their teachers and find out what class they were in. I can’t decide if D’s teacher has been very bad this year or very good as many of the kids in her class of next year are right characters. How she will keep a straight face I just don’t know.

I asked one mum if her son was looking forward to starting school. She replied yes but that she doubts he will be top of the class. “Who cares” I said. She then told me about a couple of mums who were telling her how advanced their children were and how their little darlings were reading and writing and doing sums already.

Now the mum I spoke to is very, very intelligent. Much more intelligent than I am. So I don’t think she has anything to worry about.

I also suspect that the other mums knew this too. How sad that they felt the need to boast so much and try to make her feel inadequate.

And how sad that these parents are obviously pushing their children so much at this stage when there are more important things to be doing, when their children should be spending their days splashing in puddles and pretending to be Ben Ten.

Reverse psychology

In six months time this year’s four and five year olds will be starting school. Some will be crying, many will be nervous, and a few will be clinging to their mum’s coats, asking to go home again.

My child however will be running into the school as fast as he can, asking his teacher to lock the door and not let that woman in.

I keep suggesting that he doesn’t go to school in August. Instead he can stay at home with me and we can kiss and cuddle all day. This is usually met with a scream of ‘Nooooooo”. For some reason he doesn’t want to and would rather go to school.

I now have a child who keeps taking his school shirt out of the wardrobe to wear and who has asked if he can start earlier.

Reverse psychology’s a great thing.

Not a stupid question

The other day I was having a coffee with some friends, one of whom has a child going to school in August. To preserve that child’s privacy we shall name the child Tom. So Tom say’s to his mum “Will I still be called Tom when I go to school?”

Brilliant, absolutely brilliant. But I don’t mean in a funny way. I commented to the mum that I thought it was great the child had asked that question and how much I love that stage.

Children at that stage should questions everything in life and everything about themselves, and I view it as a sign of an inquisitive mind. When you’re four there should not be any stupid questions.

Starting school

This week I registered child number three for school. Before I went in I told him he was to speak for himself. After taking his brother’s homework bag to the office and telling the office lady whose it was, we went through to the library where D told the lady his name and spelled his name out for her. I got him to do most of the talking and she even half looked at him when she asked for out postcode. But we’re not at that stage yet.

I don’t think that much has changed since I was little. Adults still like to do the talking for children. And they still suddenly turn round when child is bigger and complain because child can’t speak for himself. Conversation is not something which comes to us at the age of sixteen/eighteen/whatever other age is deemed normal. It is a learned skill which develops with age.