THE Mommy
Yesterday was the first half-day for Princess at her kindergarten. I mentioned before that we were struggling with the half or full day option. She’s so ready to be at school full-days, but we were unhappy about the lack of curriculum in the afternoons. We decided to give her a little of each and dropped her down to half days on Mondays and Fridays. Tuition was reduced $475, score!
My morning went a little smoother. I was able to get the kids ready without having to pack her a lunch. It saved me about 10 precious minutes. We actually got our “good morning” call into THE Daddy before getting into the car. I hate having to pass off my cell phone and translate “BamBam Speak” via speaker phone while trying to drive.
I was a little worried that Princess would be upset when she had to leave, but it was quite the opposite. I’m not sure who was more excited when 11:45 rolled around! I was able to get in 3 hours of work while she was there for the morning. Knowing that I didn’t have all day really forced me to focus and get things done. I was greeted with a big hug and huge smiles. She was tickled pink to leave and spend the afternoon running errands with Mommy.
We got to spend some quality “girl” time together without THE Daddy or BamBam, a rarity these days. Since she had my undivided attention, I was able to throw in a little learning along the way. We went to Friendly’s for lunch and worked on a connect-the-dots picture while waiting, all the way up to the number 40. We went grocery shopping where we talked about words and numbers. We came home and she was able to color and spell words for a bit before we had to head back out to pick up BamBam.
I’m not 100% on the half-day bandwagon. Even though they aren’t teaching new concepts in the afternoons, I still think she benefits from being there. She’ll be better prepared for first grade. Also, she loves playing in the “centers” in the afternoons at school and is looking forward to being there all day today. I think the 2 half-days will be something that we both look forward to.
Does your school district have full-day kindergarten? Is it really a full-day program, or mixed in with half-day students? I'm curious to know what other parents are doing...especially if you only have half-day in your town and you work. Please leave a comment.
Reader Comments (1)
I have full day kindergarten and my middle child enjoys it. She had half-day pre-school in the same school last year. Her big sister also goes to her school and is in second grade. They ride the bus together and see each other in the playground. She seems to love it. I think the routine you have sounds great though. I like the special time you get together and that is something you are sure to miss in the not to distant future.