staying put

for those of you who may be wondering, we have decided to keep sienna in first grade. honestly, for a while there it seemed as though this was one of those parenting decisions that has no clear answer. we have to make a difficult choice based on intuition and hope for the best.

then one of my colleagues asked me which class seemed like her karmic group of peers. good question! i had not thought of it this way before.
i have to say how incredibly blessed i feel to be able to sit down with a teacher and talk about my child's karmic group of peers! that would not happen in many schools. both the kindergarten and the first grade teachers were open to my coming to get a feel for each group.
though the kindergarten was a lovely bunch and i truly enjoyed being part of circle time with ms joy again (an added bonus!), when i joined the first grade class i knew right away that she is already where she belongs.

each class votes on a name for themselves and her class chose the wolves this year. this little wolf pack just fits together so nicely and sienna seems to be comfortable amongst her peers.

interestingly enough, when it came time for them to sit down with their writing journals i suddenly felt very anxious. i thought to myself *this is what she can't do!*. i wasn't sure if i should tell her the letters to spell the word she wanted to write or correct her as she sounded it out or just let her figure it out. as i relaxed and observed the other children around me, i was so relieved at what i saw.

some were taking their time sounding out each letter, some just started writing using their *inventive spelling* (which looked foreign to me!), and some didn't even know what they wanted to write. this is first grade!! they may be *reading* but they are all still figuring out this whole language arts thing. i believe sienna fits right in with where these children are and will do just fine.

i'm not worried about the reading either. it will come in time. i am of the opinion that writing before reading is the most beneficial anyways, though there are many different methods out there. i am bringing her the alphabet the beautiful waldorf way on my own at home. i am telling her a story of the letters. we introduce a new one and then *sleep on it*. the next day we draw, paint, color and write the letter as well as recite alliteration poems. she is loving doing this work with me.
today she wanted to show her little brother her classroom. of all the beautiful things to see, she took him right to her notebooks to show him the math, writing, and drawing work she has done. she is so proud!!
though her classroom is small, ms rachel has done a lovely job creating a warm and inviting space. there are silks and beautiful wooden figures that sienna is used to being surrounded by and they have opportunities to use these props and others to tell stories to each other. an area she excels in!

it feels wonderful to have settled back in to first grade. we both love ms rachel and we are all glad that she is still part of the wolf pack! she has so much to offer the group and it will be wonderful to see how they learn to work together. as a small class, they won't have a choice in the matter!completely unrelated, but i had to share. this is her latest creation. i love her!! she has been making little dolls like this for some time. i am loving how they have evolved. she creates them pretty much independently now and always has a clear vision of how she wants to go about it.

here's to settling in,
rae