Good Kids

I never worried when my mom headed to the school to conference with my teachers. I was one of the good kids, I knew the teachers liked me, I worked hard in school (okay, maybe not. I didn’t actually have to work hard to get good grades in elementary or even high school. The hard work came when I got to college.)

Anyway, the same has been true for Alyssa. She always knows she’s going to be given a glowing report on her classroom behavior. She always has. She’s one of the good kids.

Her teacher started our conference by saying that the surgery to remove Alyssa’s tonsils and adenoids was the best decision I could have made. She said that Alyssa has seemed like a different kid since the surgery. She’s got more energy, she’s more animated, she’s happier.

Hey, she feels better! It’s easy to be energetic and happy when you feel good. So yeah, there goes the last vestiges of guilt. Ahhh….

Alyssa is doing well in every subject, even the ones she doesn’t especially enjoy. That’s a great thing to hear. To know that even when she encounters something that isn’t exactly easy, she’s willing to do the work to learn it. That’s my girl.

She’s reading at a seventh grade level. I’m pretty proud of that.

She hasn’t actually finished a book report project that was due while she was out after her surgery. Ahem. Her teacher said that each time she mentions the project to Alyssa, Alyssa will say, “But I was absent.”

Which, well, is not excuse. So I told Mrs. K that Alyssa needs a date. She, Mrs. K, needs to tell Alyssa what day the project is to be done (it’s an oral book report, which probably terrifies Alyssa) and we’ll get it done. If Alyssa has an open ended timeline, that project is never going to get done. But if she’s given a specific deadline, she’ll get it done. I’ll make sure it (she says ominously.)

Olivia…oh, sweet, sweet Olivia. I was a little worried about this conference. Olivia can be…challenging. She’s got her own agenda, her own timeline and her own ideas on how to spend her day.

She also seems to have a sudden and frustrating aversion to bathroom at school. Which is ridiculous because it’s RIGHT THERE in the classroom! But she had accidents on Monday and Tuesday this week. Wednesday, Tom informed her she was NOT ALLOWED TO PEE IN HER PANTS WHILE AT SCHOOL. And what do you know? She didn’t.

So. Her teacher actually laughed that off. She said it might even be her and her aides fault because they’re used to children who have been potty trained for several years. She said she has to remind herself that O’s only really been fully trained for just over a year. So she’s taken to reminding Olivia that the bathroom is available to her at any time during the day. The kids don’t have to ask to use the restroom, they can just get up and go whenever they need to do so.

Then…Mrs. H said something that will forever endear her to me. She said, “I just love that girl.”

Olivia is a very charming child, when you get past the passive defiance and the occasional stench of pee.

Mrs. H said, “I’ll ask Olivia to do something at the board and she’ll grin at me and sashay right up there. She’s got some great hip action.”

I just love that Olivia is showing her teachers and her peers some of her sparkling personality. I want that for her. She’s laughing and smiling and TALKING at school these days.

And academically? She’s counting to 31. She recognized 24 out of the 26 uppercase letters and 18 out of the 26 lowercase letters. She’s interacting with her peers, she participates in group time.

Do you know how much different this is than her entire experience last year? This is so big.

I want her to enjoy learning and socializing. I want her to be liked and to be happy.

Isn’t that what we all want for our kids?

So today I’m grateful for good teachers who see the good in my kids.