Parental Thoughts

Vivian on a Scooter

Yesterday, we met with Vivian’s Senior Kindergarten teacher, for the first parent teacher meeting since Vivian started going to public school.

We really couldn’t ask for a better report. Vivian’s taken to school like a duck to water. In spite of going from a class size of eight under ECEC to twenty-five or so, she seems to thrive, moving easily between various social circles and is generally well liked. She’s also quite resilient.

Vivian’s teacher told us about an incident that happened the other day, where Vivian was working with dry-erase markers on a sheet of transparency plastic. One kid beside her would reach out and wipe out the work that Vivian had done, and that kid’s friend would laugh. The teachers, noticing this, held back momentarily, preparing to intervene, but also knowing that this was a learning moment, and seeing what Vivian would do on her own.

Finally, Vivian turned to the other two girls and said, “You are being mean and I am not going to play with you now. I am going to go somewhere else.” And with considerable dignity, she got out of her seat and went to a different play station. A definite win for Vivian.

I’m telling you this story not just to brag about Vivian’s maturity during this incident, but to describe our own reaction. Erin and I had two thoughts:

Parental Thought #1: “Oh, how wonderful! Vivian can stand up for herself without throwing a punch or bursting into tears and running away. How mature our young girl is getting!

Parental Thought #2: “Who were those girls and where exactly do they live?

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