We went up to school last Friday to buy uniforms and while we were there, we saw Megan's 1st grade teacher whom she adored. Mrs. Brill was practically tackled by 3 affectionate Dean girls who gave her a big group hug. Along the way, I gave directions to a new family looking for the bus office and felt like a seasoned veteran that I could assist someone else for a change. Navigating that campus is a major accomplishment for me.
We took care of business and peeked at Megan's new classroom as well. As soon as we did that, Elizabeth expected the same treatment so we hiked across the campus to the Early Childhood Center to see the Pre-K area. Never mind that the next day was Open House at the school when they expect families to see the rooms. The receptionist at ECC politely told us the rooms were off limits while the teachers prepared them. But then we ran into Elizabeth's preschool teacher, Ms. Jennifer, who took Elizabeth on a "private tour" and even introduced Elizabeth to her new teacher, Ms. Kaye. Elizabeth was thrilled!
We avoided the chaos of Open House on Saturday since we would be going up to school Monday to meet the teachers. We had the Pre-K orientation first and Elizabeth was excited that her friend Lizzy from last year's class is in the same class again this year. 4 children from Ms. Jennifer's class will continue on together so it was nice to see familiar faces. Elizabeth's teacher, Ms. Kaye, is originally from New Zealand and taught 1st grade at SAS for several years before going to Cambodia the past couple years to train teachers involved with the Caring for Cambodia program.
Megan could hardly wait to see her new classroom, mostly because she was eager to know who was in her class. Thankfully her good friends Lane and Jordyn are both in Mrs. Barber's class. Megan's teacher has been at SAS for 1 year and has taught internationally for over 30 years with her husband, a SAS middle school teacher. We learned from her that SAS is the largest American school outside the US. With 3,800 students, I guess I shouldn't be surprised by that.
Last year I grew to love SAS and this year it feels good to be in a familiar place. For the first time since we arrived in Singapore, I feel like all three children will be able to start school without it being a huge change for them. I'm thankful for that!
Pre-K is a different schedule for Elizabeth because she rides the bus with Megan in the morning, stays at school for lunch, and leaves for home at 1:30 each day. So, her school day is longer to gradually adjust the kids for full day Kindergarten next year. I'm happy Elizabeth will get home 90 minutes before Megan each afternoon so she can have her time to talk about her day. The challenge is that Elizabeth is not exactly a morning person like Megan so we'll see how she handles the early start. She kept saying, "I'm going to have to get up in the middle of the night!"
Both girls were wide awake and excited to start school this morning. They boarded the bus shortly before sunrise and long gone before Emily even started her day (Emily's school begins September 6). I'll be thinking about them all day in their new classes and eager to hear all about their days when they arrive home this afternoon. It should be another great year for the Dean girls at SAS!
Bus Buddies
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