Around The Corner

Marissa is Kindergarten bound come September. We're all pretty excited about it around here. Unfortunately we don't have a school in Auburn Bay, so the kids in our community will be going to Andrew Sibbald in Bonavista. I've heard good things about the school. They had a Parent Orientation night recently, Francis and I went and were very impressed. They talked about the curriculum and how they teach it, we even met the teachers. After listening to them talk about the school and curriculum we got a tour of the school. Even sat down at a table in the Kindergarten classroom. As you come in the main doors of the school there is this great welcome sign...

I love that it's made of handprints of all the students!

Man has school changed since I was little! There are no longer rows of individual desks in elementary school. In Kindergarten, they focus on play and use various learning centres. As children play, they are clarifying information, integrating ideas from previous experiences, and exploring and experimenting with their environment. Play gives children opportunities to add to their knowledge, learn new skills and practice familiar ones. Through play, children learn to deal with their feelings, interact with others and resolve conflicts. They develop their imagination, creativity and ability to solve problems. Play is a valuable and important way for children to learn. It provides the opportunity for active learning and for children to master skills that will be used later in more formal study. Learning centres give children the opportunity to explore and discover, and take responsibility for selecting and completing a variety of activities.

This was one of the two Kindergarten classrooms, possibly Marissa's!

I really enjoyed the art on the walls that the kids have done, I think the painted circles are great!

Because the school isn't in our community, the kids will be riding a bus. Seems crazy to Francis and myself, we both walked to school every day from Kindergarten all the way through Grade 12. Marissa's not having a hard time digesting that though, in fact she's thrilled that she gets to ride a school bus! I think it makes her feel pretty grown up. She had an exciting weekend, because we went to the My 1st Ride program on Saturday. It's a collaborative safety initiative between school bus carriers and school boards to provide young elementary children and their parents information about safe school busing practices. We watched a powerpoint presentation outlining service expectations as well as the responsibilities of students and parents. There was a school bus safety video for the children, followed by a formal ride on a school bus. Definitely the highlight of the whole thing! It was great, all the kids lined up and got on the bus all by themselves. Then they invited the parents on board and we sat behind all the kids. After a few blocks the bus pulled over and had the parents get off. Then the kids went for a 5 minute ride on their own. When the bus returned to pick us up, the kids got to leave the bus and find their parent. Then we all boarded once again, kids first, parents next, and returned to the school. Marissa loved it!

Does she look excited about this or what?!!!

My girl is growing up :-)

Ready for the real thing now!

Coming up in June is student orientation at Andrew Sibbald. Marissa's been over to her new school and played at the playground, but she's never been inside. She's pretty excited to go and see her Kindergarten classroom! Fingers crossed that her enthusiasm towards school continues through the years :-)