Today I accompanied Allison on a tour of the school she'll be going to this fall, Rideau Public School. Because she'll be moving from a school of 70 students to one of 400+, I thought it would be helpful for her to go in for a visit. So this afternoon we met with Vice Principal Mike Blackburn, who welcomed Allison and showed her the Grade Six classroom, the gym, the library, the office, and other important sites.
I was so proud of Allison and observed how grown-up she is becoming. She looked around at everything with quiet enthusiasm and answered questions so maturely, even though she can often be abrupt or standoffish when addressed directly by people she doesn't know well.
There were a couple of funny moments. We went into the office and met the secretary, Shelley, who is in my opinion the perfect elementary-school secretary: outgoing, kind, calm, and motherly. When we introduced Allison to her she said, "Oh, can I give you a hug?" and came right around the counter and put her arms around Allison. Mr. Blackburn looked at me with a smile and whispered, "Now that might be pushing the envelope," but Allison not only tolerated it, she actually seemed to enjoy it!
The library was of course a must-see for a voracious reader like Allison. We went in quietly because a class was in there watching a movie. Suddenly I heard the words "And on the outside is the penis" -- it was a grade 7/8 class watching a sex ed film (snickers and all). Mr. B and I started laughing, but Allison didn't notice a thing; she was too engrossed in checking out the books!
We also of course had to go and visit Jonathan's current classroom as well as the one he will be in this fall. It will be nice to have them together at the same school in September.
As I walked through the halls I had such a good feeling about the school. There were boys in the hallway outside Allison's "new" classroom (one of whom attends our church), and they were very nice to her and wanted to know if she was going to be going there and what grade she was in, etc. I'm hopeful that her leap into the big pond will be a successful one.
I love the title you chose for this post! Great idea you had to tour the school now. I'm sure it will make the transition easier for her. Maybe Alison can walk Jonathan to school and back soon???
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