School's out for summer!!!!

I realized today as we were walking home from school that Lauren has been in school for about 11 months because she started school in mid-August, and just got out of school in mid-July.  Lucky her! :)

The summer holiday is finally here and I am so ready for the break!!  After a VERY successful summer fair is over, I am looking forward to no PTA obligations for a few weeks.  And I am very excited to head back to the US to see family and friends and take part in all the celebrations that are happening!


Brad and I are SO very proud of the kids and their accomplishments in a new school this year.  Both of the girls received glowing reports, both from their teachers and from the head teacher, Mr. Croker. (I am amazed that he wrote on all 460 reports!)  And Drew's teacher said he did a fabulous job adjusting to school, and that he doesn't need to work on anything specific over the summer.  The most interesting thing she said about him is that sometimes he will be playing and another child will come up and try to play with him, and he says "Go away," which is just his way of saying that he needs some time to himself.  He is a very independent player at home, and it's great that he is so self-aware!!  He has made friends with a little boy Hugo and the 2 of them together are pretty funny!!  Drew's teacher said sometimes she has to separate them at carpet time because they "have so much fun together they can't stop talking."

Alison's teacher was complimentary of how well Alison adapted the to the class and really became more confident as the year progressed, and that she always gave 100%.  She was also very impressed with how well she mastered every area of PE, and her strength.  She is amazing at the monkey bars!  Alison's favorite parts of school are the beat that math test, and trying to get 10/10 on her spellings test (I love that she likes a challenge!!)

Lauren's teacher said that Lauren always tries her best and is a leader in the classroom and is able to get along with all different students in the class.  Lauren's favorite subject is literacy.  The hardest part of the adjustment to school was "getting used to Britich voices and wearing a uniform."

I hope that all three of the kids continue to love school as much as they do now!!  And always try their best.

To celebrate, we took the kids to see the Minions movie at the cinema tonight.  It was great fun, and Brad I were able to drink a bottle of wine while watching the movie, that's something you can't do in  America!!

The end of the year assembly yesterday was very emotional!!  There were 8 teachers that were leaving, and each one was called up individually and another staff member spoke about them, and then a few students said something to them, and it was apparent to me how much all the teachers care about the pupils and also each other.  And it just shows how much difference a teacher can make in the life of a child.  I feel so thankful for the teachers the kids had this year because it is so obvious to me how dedicated they are to the children.

And of course the hardest part was saying good-bye to Mr. Croker, who was just the interim headteacher, (the previous headteacher left for "personal reasons" last October), while they found a permanent headteacher.   He is truly a one of a kind person, who all the kids really respect.  He has that perfect balance of fun and sternness that just demands respect and admiration.  Something he said really resonated with me.  He said that when he walks through the halls of school, he always notices the children before he notices the adults, and that to me, says that he is doing exactly what he should be doing which is shaping the lives of young children.  He will be greatly missed, but the legacy that he left at Garfield in the 6.5 months he was at the school with not be forgotten.