Last Day at SAS

One particular location on the island has seen the bulk of my tears over our move: the school. All of the girls' teachers, at some point this spring, have witnessed my teary-eyed response when they asked how I felt about leaving Singapore.

I expected last Friday to be my final trip to the Woodlands when Elizabeth's Kindergarten class held its year-end program. I didn't even exit the freeway before the waterworks began. I was completely unprepared for such strong emotions surrounding the school and I had to laugh (through the tears) that when we moved to Singapore, the only time I became emotional and homesick for Texas was during my trips up to the campus here. The school felt so far away from our condo, it was an enormous campus where I constantly got lost (I still can't find the cafeterias very well) and the machine gun-armed guard at the entrance didn't exactly create a warm and fuzzy feeling for the place. (He's no longer there).

Megan's First Day at SAS: 

Kindergarten - January 2009

Three and a half years later, I have a completely different feeling when I approach the SAS campus. I see a school that never ceases to impress me in pretty much every area. Our children have all had such positive experiences there and I know for certain that while our neighborhood school back in Texas will provide a good education, it will not have the resources our girls have grown accustomed to at SAS. They have virtually nothing to compare to their school experience here and we have subtly reminded them that they will not be swimming in PE class, playing the Indonesian gamelan in music or practicing Mandarin on a regular basis. We will need to supplement the "extras" outside of the school day back in Texas and that's okay. It will just be different. Spanish will likely become the language of choice, although Elizabeth says she would like to continue with Chinese. And piano will be a more practical instrument to learn there. :)

Elizabeth's First Day at SAS:

Pre-School - August 2009

There's another aspect of SAS that will not be easily replicated. While it's an American school, only half the students are US passport holders so our children were exposed to a wide variety of cultures among their classmates and teachers. It won't be that way back in our suburban public school. So far our only solution for that loss is to continue to travel with our children to help foster a broader view of the world.

Emily's First Day at SAS:

PreK - August 2011

Looking back at our expat experience here, the school was a huge reason why it worked so well. Once our children entered that campus, they flourished and we never worried that our move had negatively affected them. On the contrary, we knew that they were receiving a phenomenal education and we began to appreciate why people choose to stay here until their children graduate from SAS.

As it turned out, I drove up to school one more time, on the final morning, to take care of some business associated with leaving the school. I'm glad I was there because it gave me an opportunity to thank each teacher again for a great year and I made a point to speak to the director of the Early Childhood Center, whom I especially appreciate after watching both Elizabeth and Emily thrive under her leadership.

Waiting for the Bus on the Last Day of School

I picked up Megan, Elizabeth and Emily from their classes and we made our way to the bus parking lot adjacent to the Primary and Intermediate Schools. Each year on the last day of school, the staff gathers at the curb to wave goodbye to the students while the buses honk their horns in celebration. When I saw Megan's science teacher wearing ear plugs, I knew it was going to be loud. With about 30 huge coach buses leaving that area of campus, the sound was deafening. But it was so much fun. The girls and I waved to each passing yellow bus until the noise faded and we made our way from campus for the final time.

Emily with Ms. Kiran and Kanak (PreK)

Ms. Wan with Elizabeth (K)

Mrs. Buxton with Megan (3rd grade)

I will not miss the 6am alarm or the 25-minute drive to campus. But I will definitely miss the school. And with three daughters, I will miss the uniforms! I am so thankful our children were able to attend the Singapore American School.