The girls started preschool on Monday. Hannah absolutely loves it. I knew she would. It has all the things she wants to do: recess outside on playground equipment, story time, tons of fun activities in her classroom, playing with kids her age, and following rules. So on the first day of preschool, she immediately started playing with trains and barely even glanced at me to say goodbye. Every afternoon she doesn't want to leave because she is in the middle of fun. I have to promise that we'll come back tomorrow. She has three teachers and there are 17 kids in her class, although not all of them come every day. So it is more like ten kids on any given day. Her teachers said she is having a great time, she's the best listener, and she makes friends easily. Hannah said her favorite part of school is playing with trains and recess. She also really likes having classroom jobs. So far she has chosen to be the fish feeder, line leader, calendar, and table washer. She said her least favorite part of preschool is the boys talking when they are supposed to be quiet during nap time. Each child has a symbol by their name on their cubby, name tag, etc. Hannah's is a horse. It is her favorite animal, so she is really happy about that. Olive's is an owl.
Olive is still adjusting. I say she goes to preschool, but it is really just daycare with a few learning activities. She absolutely loves her backpack. Great-grandpa gave it to her and it looks like a cow. I think that is her favorite part about preschool. Oh, and snacks. She also really likes the animals painted on the walls and windows of her classroom. She points to them everyday. The first day I dropped her off there weren't any tears, but she looked at me like "Seriously? You want me to stay here with these kids I don't know?" By day 3, she was crying. It was a rough week. Part of the problem is she has a cold so she doesn't feel good. And she is still adjusting to one nap a day, too. Friday was the only day she had a really good nap. Olive has two teachers and seven kids in her class, although I've never seen more than four. She is the oldest one. We get a paper every day telling what and how much she ate, how much she slept, and what activities they did that day. It's really nice since she can't tell us about her day like Hannah can. I think Olive will get settled in a couple of weeks and really like it. She's at the separation anxiety age and she's never been separated from Hannah before. It is nice to pick her up in the afternoon because she runs at me smiling with arms open for a hug.
Overall, we are really happy with preschool. All of their teachers are really awesome...and we all know teachers are the most important part of school. :) I think childcare is one of the most difficult decisions for any parent. I thought a lot about staying home vs. in-home daycare vs. preschool/daycare center. I never thought I would put my kids in a full-day preschool program so early, but Hannah REALLY loves it. She is in heaven. I still don't think starting preschool so early is the right choice for a lot of three-year-olds...especially really shy or hyperactive ones. Hannah just has that I-love-school personality, so it works for her.
Hannah in the front of her classroom with one of her teachers
playing with trains in Hannah's classroom
Olive likes sitting in chairs for snack
No comments:
Post a Comment