Meeting Mrs. Polka Dots and friends...

Tonight we went to the Kindergarten parents meeting at J's new school. For whatever reason (apparently known only to educators), teacher placement is top secret until the last minute possible. To all of you experienced Elementary School parents, if anyone understands why your child's teacher is a matter of national security please fill me in.

Picture it. 11 class lists are posted on the main doors of the school building, one for every Kindergarten teacher. All the parents are huddled around the doors looking for their child's name. You hear a few oooo's and ahhhh's followed by the cordial smile from the stranger beside you. It's like Elementary School all over again...you're just being "sized up" by other parents instead of classmates. Don't pretend you don't know what I'm talking about.

Then it was off to the gym to hear a word from the Principal (who will lovingly be referred to as "Mrs. Goodness" to maintain our privacy). She is a very nice woman, seems to genuinely love her job and has listened intently to our concerns and suggestions for placement. On Monday, the state of -- announced her nomination as one of eight finalists for the (state) Principal of the Year award. She did not mention that to us but the PTO president made the announcement in her honor. During her 9 years as Principal, she has also received numerous honors from organizations across the state for her role as Principal (thank you Google). To me, that speaks volumes. Overall I think we are going to like her; although, I reserve the right to change my mind at any point in the next 11 years. That's how long it will take all three of our children to make it out of 5th grade.

After all of the introductions, we were off to meet his teacher (who will lovingly be referred to as "Mrs. Polka Dots"--I'll tell you why in another post). She is actually the teacher that tested him on his screening day so she recognized me right away. We've heard many wonderful things about her including praise from both current and previous co-workers and past parents. She is our age, has children of her own and seems to love little people. She said she was excited to have J in her class. She thought he was "precious on the day of screening" and "had hoped he would land in {her} class". Apparently Mrs. Goodness thought she was a good match based upon the information we provided her. Please Lord, let this be a good match.