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Maya is extremely shy and nervous, she has been since birth. Even as a baby she was painfully shy around people, even those she saw regularly, and she had a very nervous personality. I’m sure you all remember the debacle that was our first attempt at gymnastics a couple of years ago. So, when she started preschool last year I was understandably nervous about how it would go. But I ended up not having anything to worry about, she did great.
Thanks to an amazing preschool teacher that really did a great job of helping Maya come out of her shell I felt like we took two giant steps forward in tackling her shyness. She was open to playing with new kids at the playground. She took gymnastics and dance without any trouble. Her summer camps went really well (most of them anyway). I could still see glimpses of that super shy little girl that started the school year, but mostly she was gone. And then we moved…
We are in the second week of school and instead of things improving they seem to be getting worse. She was scared and nervous her first day but did really well at drop off, she didn’t even cry. On her second day she cried at drop off but still ended up having a great day. Yesterday at drop off she threw a fit and clung to me crying. Her teacher was able to calm her down and I was able to leave, but when I came to pick her up she said she didn’t play or do anything all morning she just stood with her teacher. It is definitely beginning to feel like we have taken two steps backwards. The strides we made last year are all but gone.
I know it is still early in the school year so there is still hope. I know a lot of what is going on with her stems from the move and leaving her friends, her school, her home, all that was comfortable to her. I hope that as time passes she’ll make a friend or two in class and things will get easier for her and she’ll gain back some of the confidence she worked so hard for last year. Her teachers at her new school are wonderful and are working hard to help Maya feel comfortable at school and I really appreciate that.
We’ll just keep talking to her, encouraging her and working on getting her to come out of her shell a bit. She loved school so much last year, I hope she gets to that point at this new school too. Looking forward to taking those two giant steps forward with her again, hopefully sooner rather than later.
Today was Maya’s first day of her Pre-K year of preschool. I can hardly believe she is almost 5 and already in her second year of preschool. Time flies.
Understandably she was incredibly nervous about starting school this year. There have been a lot of changes in her little world this summer and she is still very homesick for her friends back in St. Louis. We spent a lot of time talking about all the things she loved about school last year to keep her excited about the idea of going to school again this year.
She did an awesome job at drop off this morning. A lot of nerves but no tears.
When I picked her up she was full of stories of what she did at school and said she had a great time. I’m so glad she had a good first day.
Here’s to an awesome school year!
It is about that time of year again, back to school time. Maya starts her last year of preschool, her per-kindergarten year, in just under 2 weeks.
Way back in the early spring when it was registration time at her beloved preschool in St. Louis, before we knew our world was going to be turned upside down with a move to Seattle, I had signed her up for the 4 day a week pre-k program. She was going to have the same teacher as last year and many of the same classmates. We were both super excited about it. Then things got turned upside down and I had to hunt for a school here in Seattle that was a good match for us and had openings available. Luckily, I found what seems to be a good match.
The school I found here is a natured based preschool. They spending an hour outside everyday going for hikes, searching for bugs and butterflies in the meadow, playing on the playground, riding bikes, you name it. Their academic program is nature based as well. Maya will be attending 3 days a week. It sounds like a wonderful program and I hope Maya really enjoys it.
I had a parent orientation at the school today. The teachers are wonderful and the program for this year sounds great. The school is small and there seems to be a real sense of community among the parents. I’m excited for the school year to start. I hope Maya has a wonderful last year of preschool and makes some wonderful new friends this year.
This was Maya’s first week of summer vacation. Last Thursday was the last day of her first year of preschool. She had such a fabulous year.
To celebrate the last day of school and the beginning of a glorious summer break they had a luau party. The kids all got to wear leis, eat fruit kebabs and indulge in snow cones. After their Hawaiian themed snack we headed into their classroom where the parents were treated to a slideshow of all the pictures Mrs. M had taken throughout the year. It was amazing to see how grown up all the kiddos look now compared to those first days of school.
Maya was not excited about the prospect of summer break. She adores going to school and doesn’t understand why she should take a break from something she loves. On Tuesday she asked me to call Mrs. M (her teacher) to see if they were ready to start school again now. I have her signed up for a couple of summer camps and she is looking forward to those and in the meantime I’m trying to keep her busy. This week we did a lot of craft projects, did some finger painting outside and a little science experiment.
Hopefully she has a wonderful summer and I know she is going to be excited when the new school year begins.
Yesterday our tiny dancer got to show off her mad dancing skills at the end of the year “Show Day” at the Little Gym. For the last 6 months she has thoroughly enjoyed going to dance class every week. She as loved learning tap, ballet and gymnastics with a fun group of girls and her awesome teachers. The class was perfect for her. It let her experience a dance class but still get to do gymnastics, which she loves.
Each week I would sit and watch this bitty little 3 and 4 year olds dancing, twirling, tapping and pirouetting their way across the dance studio floor. I’d watch them tumble, balance and flip on the gymnastics equipment and couldn’t help but smile. There truly isn’t anything cuter than a room full of little girls in tutus enjoying themselves so completely.
Show Day was their chance to show off for their moms, dads, siblings and grandparents all the skills they had learned. They did a little tap routine, a ballet routine and then showed off a few skills on the gym equipment. My heart swelled as the girls filed into the room looking adorable in their matching tutus and looking so proud of themselves. Having watched them practice and practice these routines every week it was so fun to watch it all come together. They did an amazing job.
Getting ready for the show to start.
First up, the tap routine.
Next up, the ballet routine.
And finally, the gymnastics routines. First tumbling, then balance beam.
She was very proud of herself, and deservedly so, she did an awesome job. As we were leaving she said “Mom, I want to do dance class again, I love it!”
Our Proud Dancer.