Whew!

The class lists came out yesterday. 
I waited as long as I could before I went up to the school to check.  Yeah, that would be 10:15.  hee hee. I wanted to go at 9 when the school doors should have opened.
Thankfully there were no surprises. 

DS - got the "organized" teacher I was hoping for. I'd heard good things about her though I have never had any interaction with her.  I just polled lots of parents and everyone who had her liked her.  Always a good sign.  The fact that she's considered organized and very "on-task" with the kids is a plus for DS.  I dread transitions with him.  I feel like I have to break in a new teacher every fall.  It takes time to get to know his quirks and I pray every year that they are at least familiar with the  concept of SPD.  I am usually very willing to lend out my books if they want to gather some more info on how his crazy brain works.  And help me, he's already talking about the stupid Fire Drill.  It's like he's being set on fire when it happens. He screams, covers his ears and basically it's torture for him.  It's torture for the other kids too because if they know him, they roll their eyes and say, "He's at it again."  If they don't know him, it's not a great first impression for him to overcome.  Poor kid.  He's immediately labeled as "weird". 
His BFF isn't in his class - thankfully. That was on purpose too.  I have tried to get him to understand that it's ok to not be in the same class.  When it's class time, it's work/serious time.  They can make a place to meet on the playground for recesses.  Still, he's uneasy about not having that comfort of his friend with him.  I get it. But secretly I'm hoping he branches out and makes some new friends too. 

DD - got the team taught class I was expecting too.  Over the summer I heard rumors of a 1st & 2nd grade combo class.  Uh oh.  NO ONE I talked to was excited about this save for  one mother.  One parent went so far as to tell me she didn't think the particular teacher assigned to it would be able to adequately teach that way.  So I was nervous that things would be different than I expected.  Nope.  She's in class with her BFF and two other good girlfriends.  We showed her her classroom door (locked at the time though I think the teacher was in there, can't blame her for not wanting to be disturbed though!).  We showed her where she will line up outside when the bell rings before school and at recess.  She's excited now.  She's finally dropped the "Mom! Will you just please homeschool me?" routine.  Right. 'cause that's gonna happen!

While we were there, we stopped in to see DS's 3rd grade teacher.  It's a comfort to him knowing that she will be just down the hall from his new classroom.  He told her he may come see her and get some advice through the school year.  He's never been excited to go back and visit a past teacher before.  They just really bonded! 

Me working hard on having a good relationship and reputation among the teachers is going well.  She asked me for advice on a few things with dealing with parents for the upcoming year.  She's been teaching a lot longer than I've had kids in school so that was a surprise.  But it was flattering all the same.  DD's teachers have already been told by her K teacher that I'm "wonderful".  I know this because I saw the note at the bottom of her end of the year evaluation that goes with them to the next class.  :D  It's such a fine line to walk - I want to be there and make sure my kids are getting the best they can and being treated fairly but I don't want to be overbearing and a busy-body.  I want to keep the reputation of "you want this woman's children in your class" among the teachers like I have now.  I saw that when DS was in 1st grade and one mom went off the 2nd week of school about her precious baby being treated unfairly.  It was a small incident really and my DS was involved too.  I spoke to the teacher and that was that.  This mom went off and emailed the teachers, the principal and kept going & going.  The 2nd week of school? Really?!  Well she now has a reputation that  I don't want around the school. 

So now we will sharpen the pencils, label the supplies and pack up the backpacks.  The kids got excited about it all over again just being at the school yesterday.  I'm uneasy, as I am every school year, and waiting to get to know the teachers.  Praying that they "get" my kids the way ones in the past have and that it all goes smoothly.  It's exciting and nerve-wracking for all of us.