Today was the first grade parent connection at the kids' school. I love that they do this. It is a chance for us to go in, have lunch in the classroom, look at the work they've done the first few weeks of school and then the kids head out to recces(or today it was the gym thanks to mother nature). While the kids are gone the teacher goes over the rules and expectations for the year, what they will be learning and any other important info they need to cover. This year Audrey will be getting homework! Homework was a big topic at the connection. I love Audrey's teacher, she also has 2 kids at their school and understands the struggle that is homework. I fear we will have a struggle with Audrey. Dart is great about homework. He gets his homework packet on Friday and by Saturday morning all but the reading part is done. If not he stresses until it is. He also does all the extra credit stuff. He is my over-achiever type A child! Audrey, God love her is my creative, if I feel like doing something I will child. She is smart, sometimes too smart for her own, however for her to do her work or learn something new she has to want to do it and that is the struggle. Her teacher has a daughter just like her and told me after the connection was over "If Audrey is as much like Emmy as I think she is, you will need lots and lots of wine." Audrey was not really excited about homework yesterday. I think she is warming up to the fact.
Dart will have his parent connection later this month. I'm anxious for it because it will be student led for a little bit. Their school is "
A Leader in Me" school. Leader in Me is a program based on
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
. In doing this program they have begun to put the older kids in charge of the parent connection and parent/teacher conferences. The kids love it. They have also started to lead the monthly assemblies. I have seen HUGE changes in some kids. There was one young man last year who lived next to us in our old house and he was not the most pleasant person to be around. However, thanks to making him believe he truly could be a leader he grew into a very nice young man. He was always quick to volunteer to help at various events and even won an award that I'm pretty sure had it not been for the Leader in Me he would have never even been considered.
