…and first grade…and second grade…and high school…
Today, I visited the school that my five year old will be attending in the Fall when he starts Kindergarten. And as I observed the excitement of the children with their little can’t-be-still -for-more-than-five seconds bodies, their colorful art projects adorning the walls and the competent teacher running the show, I was struck by one very powerful memory. I really hated school.
Okay – hate is a strong word. And I did enjoy certain aspects of school…but the tedious work of studying, memorizing and sitting for hours on end? I was never a fan. And while I suppose Kindergarten was kind of a cake walk, looking back, I can see how it foreshadowed the pressure and responsibility of the higher grades and higher education.
To this day, my math skills are pathetic. All of those hours with the algebra tutor? Wasted! I can barely remember how to multiply fractions. And while I always loved reading and plowed through far more of the Summer reading list than was actually required, I dreaded writing the reports. Memorizing definitions for tests? Pure torture.
So while I sat there listening to a story about Frog and Toad and their garden and then watched the kids puzzle out the answers to various questions regarding plot, their bright shiny faces began to blur. While they were jumping out of their seats to scream “seeds!” “soil!” and “water!” – I was thinking “blood!” “sweat!” and “tears!“
School for me was a grind. It was a necessary evil and at best, an excellent way to meet friends and learn how to French braid hair. I got good grades in the subjects I liked and mediocre grades in the ones I didn’t, and I lived for the Summer when my time was finally my own again.
As much as I am thrilled that my kids will be starting school and beginning to learn how to navigate the world outside of our cul de sac, I’m also dreading all of that homework to be monitored. I didn’t enjoy doing my own. I seriously doubt that I’ll like doing my children’s science fair projects for them.
But then there is another part of me that thinks a Social Studies text book is just what I need. After forgetting about 80% of what I learned in school, it might be a good idea to have some refreshers on world explorers (what did Ponce de Leon do again?), North American Indian tribes, and the states’ capitals (I’m always stumped by Bismark). It might improve my cocktail party small talk – you’d be surprised how often cuneiform comes up as a topic. Seriously though – I’m often shocked by the things that I really should know, but just don’t remember. So quizzing my children on the difference between a genus and a species may not be such a bad thing.
But all of those years… I look at the Kindergartners and think, “this is just the beginning…armed felons get shorter prison sentences…” So no, I don’t have any desire to go back. I really didn’t hate school – but man, I’m SO glad it’s over.
You often hear people talk about children keeping us young. That we relive our own youth in watching theirs. And that works for me as far as the tree climbing and tea parties go – but I’ll happily skip the P.E. class indignities thank you very much.
Next up: sitting around watching little league games! Damn kids, with their contagious youth.
I think I have this pie-in-the sky notion of looking forward to my children going to school, probably because they're not really there yet.
Like you, I wasn't a fan of school either. I had a science tutor, and a math tutor and only just scraped through both subjects (and now recall nothing of either). Maybe it'll be different once they're there though.
yeah, school was easy for me, but i liked it less once my kids started. however, the international school they're in now is so lovely, organic and homework-lite. it's renewing my love of school a bit. i think what i'm saying is that you should consider moving abroad.
I know it won't make you feel better to tell you that I loved school as a kid, but perhaps it will help to know that my son — who is finishing kindergarten in two days — has been almost NOTHING like me in school. This is not to say that he hates what I loved; it's not that simple. But it is to say that the ways he is around teachers and friends are often different from my behavior patterns in terms that are fascinating. So, while you may not love going back through school in some ways, I'm guessing you will find it really interesting to watch your own kids' minds expand to marvel over how they move through the world in ways that are partly like their parents' and partly all their very own. Enjoy the adventure.
I'm dreading school and the homework and the PTA.
Can't they just stay little?