A Great Meeting with the School!

A photo of the grounds. Incidentally, my American friend whose son attended this school for 6th grade worked with the school to install the peace obeslisk you see in the foreground

We went to the school today and met with the early years director. She is so great. Incredibly gracious and kind. She listened to my concerns without judgement, and spoke to them. She feels that this is the ideal age for Eva to enter into school, and that she will benefit from and be open to being with other children and learning from exposure to a new environment. Especially one as enriching as a Montessori classroom.

She was sympathetic to my concerns about conflicts with other children. She said she couldn't guarantee there would never be a conflict with a classmate. However she could assure me that the guides are trained and experienced in recognizing unhealthy situations and working together with the children to resolve them. Also she pointed out that the children are free to leave the classroom at anytime to go outside onto the patio, to the play structure, or to visit the chickens they have there. I like this a lot because it can be so helpful to have a change of scenery (especially to the outdoors) when one feels frustrated or overwhelmed.

We dropped in on the classroom and met Ana, who will be one of Eva's guides. She speaks excellent english and actually does summer camps in San Antonio, Texas. While I want Eva to 'do school' in spanish, it's also important that she is able to express herself and be understood when she really needs it. Eva was very shy, clinging to my leg and pretty much silent. But she was also extremely excited. (Micah just barged right into the classroom. In fact, we peeked into the english class on the way there, Micah marched in and took a seat in their circle. No shyness issues there.) A number of children stopped their work to come over and see who was in their class. They were curious, open, friendly but not at all aggressive about it. I just loved the look and feel of that classroom and the children in it. So orderly and peaceful, but you can also feel the energy and concentration.

The director offered that Eva could come on Friday for an hour (or as long as she'd like) as a guest to the classroom. She can come one other time for a longer period before the end of this school year. And in the fall if she needs it, Eva can make a gradual entry to going to school full time.

When I told Eva she could come back on Friday for an hour she said she wanted to come for five hours, and she wanted to do it now! Her enthusiasm hasn't diminished.

We'll take the director up on these offers, but even without them I'm pretty much convinced that this will be a good thing for Eva, and that the risks to her wellbeing are very minimal. I'm so looking forward to seeing how she learns and grows through this!!