School Conferences x2

Sometimes conferences mean
Group Hug

We had school conferences for the girls last week. Neither of us was too concerned as we hadn't heard much from preschool and I've talked to Fiona's teacher several times (usually about spina bifida related topics). We felt that we'd know if there were any big issues.

So we were a little surprised when, the day before her conference, I told Bugs that we would see her teacher tomorrow and she burst into tears. Later that night, I was able to talk to her more in depth about why she was upset. She told me that they did Writer's Workshop in class and that she "did it wrong and I'm not a good writer." I told her that we would ask her teacher what was expected and then we would practice at home. We assured her that everyone has stuff that they have to work hard on and that we weren't upset with her.

Official PreK picture

We really like Fiona's teacher - and so does Fiona - and it's clear that Ms. B likes her too. I did ask about F's writing and Ms. B was completely shocked. She said that Fiona was one of her best writers and even showed me an example. F had wanted to write "I played with my neighbor" and wrote (without any help!) "I plad with mi nabr." Not too shabby for a six-year-old! Root cause of the distress is that they went over their report cards as a class the day before conferences and she had a score of a "1" for writing skills (3 is the best). Even though she is doing just fine, they grade on where they expect kids to be at the end of the year. Being our perfectionist oldest child, she was devastated at her low score. But felt much better after we told her that she's doing great!

It's been pretty much radio silence from Quinn's school, so we were really excited to hear how it was going. Q's teacher was surprised to learn that she was a "young four" because she is doing really well both academically and socially. She plays while with the other kids and is very engaged in class. She still needs the occasional reminders on expectations - but what four-year-old doesn't.

We mentioned that one of the reasons that we put her in preschool this year to was gauge readiness for Kindergarten next year. At this point in the year, Quinn is doing fantastic. She loves school and we can see her confidence growing there. She is making some good friends and loves to tell us about her day. She is a total sponge and enjoys learning new things.