Do You Hear That?

Neither do I! Isn't silence a wonderful thing!! Hubby is at work and Cameron is at student orientation for a little bit this morning. I finally have some peace and quiet after 2 loooong weeks.

Last night was Parent orientation. I knew that the actual school year was going to be different from the summer program, but I had no idea just how different it was going to be. The parent handbook is 28 pages of very specific rules and guidelines, all of which I think are reasonable. It was nice to see that the school enforces healthy lunches and snacks. No sweet or salty foods in lunch boxes. Parents supply snack for the class on an assigned day and they want things like wheat and multi grain breads and crackers, organic foods, low fat, low salt and naturally sweet things.

Something I found interesting was the shoe policy. They are not allowed to wear outdoor shoes in the classroom. When they arrive in the morning they have to take off their shoes and put on their indoor shoes (which they suggest to be a type of slipper). This is so that they don't track dirt into the classroom and makes for a cleaner learning environment.

We also received a paper that compares Montessori with traditional education which was quite interesting to read. I knew generally what Montessori was about and from that I knew it would be the right place for Cameron. I didn't know just how different it was from traditional schools until I read this comparison. Travis and I were considering putting her into another private (traditional) school once she entered kindergarten, but I might want to rethink that and keep her at the Montessori school through 4th grade which is the highest grade level they go.

After seeing the classroom daily schedule I realized that the half day program will be fine for her. She will get out at 11:30 instead of 2:00. The only thing she will be missing is lunch, 1 hour of work cycle and 30 minutes of job time (the kids are responsible for classroom chores). I don't really think that is worth 110.00 more a month.

The school offers extracurricular activities (for an added fee of course) and she has chosen to do dance class. It will be tap, ballet and tumbling. Next week we have to take her to the dance studio to be fitted for dance clothes that she has to have and ballet and tap shoes that she has to have. I believe the dance class is once a week for the entire school year (waiting on more information) and it's 38.00 a month. She's excited to "be a ballerina".

The school also has a parents organization that meets once a month and parents can join different committees to help with things at the schools. I am all over this one! I want to be as involved as I possible can.

So it looks like it is going to be a pretty exciting year for Cameron (as well as mom and dad). I am looking forward to it.