FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL: YAY, MEW ENTERS GRADE 1!

Today 26 August 2010 is the first day of the schoolyear 2010-2011. In our tradition, the first schoolday for all Graders 1 even marks the most important event in kids' school life. It sets off a brandnew start for both kids and their parents in the formers' pursuit of knowledge and scholastic success that pave the ultimate way to life success. It is the time when our kids (and us parents) learn about the notion of "homework", "exams", etc. It is also the time when we all cherish the value of education and sometimes feel lagged behind the pace of knowledge evolution when our kids begin to ask difficult and/or complicated questions. It's indeed the time for all of us to learn and keep learning.

And today Mew enters Grade 1! How great it is! We have talked all about her new experience and adventure in Grade 1 (and even further) for the last few weeks. We started to prepare all school stuffs immediately when the school sent us the list. We sat together to arrange and organize things into her new backpack. We spent hours to make name labels and stick them to her stuffs. We told her to be concentrated in class and listen to her teacher. "You are now Grader 1!" - we remind her all the time. And she feels she is really!

However, we were a bit disappointed at the manner her school organized the first schoolday. In fact, they did not celebrate it nor launch any ceremony at all. Although they sent us a letter informing that the school bus would operate today, we waited at the bus stop until 7.30am and there was no sign of any school bus arriving. Finally, Mew's Daddy had to take her to school by bike (we planned that he would accompany her there on the first day before class anyway, but we wanted her to take the school bus by herself to gain more independence). At school, all the kids and parents waited in the school yard and tried to figure out who would go to which class (I wondered why they did not simply prepare a class list in advance and send it to us together with all other documents?). It was a little bit disorganized when parents searched for their kid's name in the list of students on the nameboard post that each teacher held in her/his hand. However, it did not take long for Mew and her Daddy to spot her name at the 15th place in class 1B (there are totally 16 students in her class this year). Her teacher seems to be older than others with a very kind-looking face, so we expected that Mew would have a wonderful schoolyear with her experienced teacher.

Once all the kids found their class and their teacher, they quickly said goodbye to their parents and off they went into class at 8.00 am. It seemed that Mew still needed a little of transition as she sobbed with her teary eyes and held onto her Daddy when the time for separation came. It was quite understandable since as a kid, she was unsure about her coming experience even though we tried to instill into her mind with the excitement for Grade 1.

We are now anxiously awaiting for her coming home this afternoon to see how her first schoolday was. It should be a beautiful memory for her after all, we hope.

UPDATED: Mew was happy with her first day of Grade 1. So happy and excited that she totally forgot to take home her lunchbag and jacket and could not even remember where she did put them the last time (such a memorable day!). We hoped that she left those things on the school bus home and we could ask the driver for help tomorrow morning. The last thing to complain about her school's disorganization today was the unexpected school bus trip in the afternoon. After the no-show of school bus in the morning, all parents believed that they would have to come to school to pick their kids up in the afternoon. And when parents arrived there at around 3.15pm, they were surprised to know that their kids had got on the school bus to come home. Few were angry while others (including Mew's Daddy) rushed back to the school bus's stop to catch up with their kids. Luckily that Mew's Daddy had arrived there just a few second before the school bus stopped to drop Mew. Otherwise, he would have to make another bike trip back to her school to pick her up, phew!

Here is a beautiful song in our mother tongue for you, our dearest Mew, to help you never forget your first day of school: