School Days

I've been trying to figure out just how to write about this, so here goes.

Last week, after Vicki picked Samson up on Tuesday, the director of the school, Bev, called Vicki into her office. Never a good sign. Sam's teacher, the much beloved Miss Jackie, had been out on Monday and Tuesday and so Miss Melissa was filling in.

On Monday night, when I asked him about her, Samson offered a terse assessment: "She's not pretty."

So I wasn't entirely surprised that she said something to the director of the school about him. But what she said was that Samson is having too much trouble adjusting (i.e., crying too much and preferring to be in point A when it's time to go to point B, etc).

The upshot of it was that the director wanted to know a) if we were aware of this [we were not; each day, his little sheet tells us if and what he ate, whether he napped, etc --- it does not provide any information on existential crises during playtime] and b) what we wanted to do.

Once Vicki explained to the director that she could not leave work early [this was after she'd already told her she worked at an elementary school] and could not "bring work home with her" [even for a school counselor this would constitute kidnapping], they arrived at the idea that maybe he just needs some more time at school to establish a routine.

Fair enough, since he goes on Monday and Tuesday and then has five days off. Not quite as sweet a deal as a NYC fireman, but pretty damn close. Of course, when Vicki asked Bev what Sam's teacher thought, she told her that she hadn't discussed it with Jackie since she'd been out for the past two days.

So essentially she'd called Vicki in for a conference based on the recommendation of a "not pretty" substitute. Super.

In case you're wondering, it's not a good idea to upset an eight-month-pregnant lady. I don't know if Bev has any idea how close she came to being beaten up with a Thomas the Tank Engine backpack, but believe me, she came pretty close.

I followed up with Miss Jackie the next day, and we will indeed send him for a half-day on Fridays to help him get more into the groove. Literally, since Friday is music class day, and Jackie noted how Samson seems to be able to turn anything in the classroom into an instrument. I couldn't tell if she said this with admiration or exasperation, but if he's making didgeridoos out of paper towel tubes in her class, it's a good sign. [More on this in a later post.]

We're fine with giving him an extra half-day, but I wonder why this couldn't simply have been suggested in the first place. I had a short but somewhat frustrating conversation with the director in which she explained to me --- in a tone usually reserved for giving foreign tourists directions --- that two-year-olds enjoy routines and need them. To which I duly replied "I understand, and I think your idea about an extra half-day will help him." And that was that.

What I wanted to say was "Thanks, Piaget. I've been reading the same three books every night to him for four months now. I think I'm pretty well apprised of this toddler's love of repetition. Any other insights you want to share?"

In any event, I do think this will help him adjust a little more. Especially since we're about a month out from the arrival of the baby.

Which, and I'm no early childhood expert, I imagine will give Samson pause. [Perhaps I should call Bev up and get her thoughts on the matter...]