Come on now - Kara is only 2 and a half!
The director of the Montessori program admitted that it was probably premature to have a meaningful "report" on Kara, given that she's only 2.5 and that she's been there a mere 3 weeks. Nothing was a huge surprise but it did give me an insight on the Kara that I miss out on seeing Mon through Frid. I also got to ask lots of "is this normal for her age" kind of questions which was reassuring.
Gross and fine motor skills = quite good for her age, particularly the fine motor movements. At this stage she is ambidextrous and I've noticed that at home too. Now that would be cool if she retains this.
Social/Emotional = this covers a bunch of things from having a "can do" attitude, to separating from parents, listens to and follows directions, respectful towards others, etc. They were pleased that Kara was only upset for the first week when we dropped her off. They commented that kids are often better the first week and it's the second-third week that many of them get really upset. So Kara has transitioned well and already feels very comfortable with all the teachers - she'll sit in their laps and asks them to come over to help her with something. She'll mostly play by herself rather than do 'projects' with one or two others (this is age appropriate), but she really enjoys circle time and larger group activities. She is very polite and considerate and overall "scores high" in this area - that's my girl Kara!
She is tentative with 'physical' activities but as soon as she sees others doing something she'll join in with gusto (I can see her as a follower and I know that Sophie will most likely come up with the ideas and Kara will go along with it and be the one who gets caught!).
Apparently she is quite intrigued with "Thomas", an older boy who often gets to read books to the class before nap time. She mentions his name at home and I had just assumed it was one of the teachers. I've often noticed that Kara will follow boys rather than other girls in either classroom settings or in the playground or play dates, etc. And not the quiet boys either!Music = Kara loves all the music and dance sessions, which wasn't a surprise since she frequently breaks into song at home and is forever asking me to sing throughout the day. But supposedly she has good 'music appreciation' but not 'music performance' (she prefers the singing and movement rather than playing instruments).
Academic (reading, math, science, etc) = they didn't make much comment THANK GOD as she's only 2! But I have their list of about 35 'criteria' so I can keep these in the back of my mind (or not!) for years to come. It's so funny to read some of them and think "oh yeah, I guess she will be able to 'name between 9-12 body organs' and 'recognize the decimal layout' at some stage" (holy shit!).
What all the teachers have noticed the most about Kara is her sense of humor. I just assumed she was comfortable with us at home and we "have fun" all day. But they said she will often start laughing at something she has done (they used the words "crack-up"!) and actually has little "personal jokes" with each of the teachers and has an appreciation that she is being funny. Lance and I really enjoy her company and humor, so it's so nice that others enjoy her as well.
PS: I asked if Kara whined continuously at school but apparently she reserves this character trait just for me at weekends.
1 comment:
We had a conference at Esther's school too - it's required for the NAEYC accreditation process they are undergoing. I thought it was laughable as well, but it is fun to see what other people notice in your child!
Suggestion for brownie points: I found some mother's day cards at a big Hallmark that are intended for your child's caregiver. They might love that!
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