Pre-K Commencements & the Big K Decision

It's inevitable.  You mention commencement ceremonies, and I have to think of the generic speech that while this is the end of something, commencement really means beginning.  I feel like I could go on and on about all the beginnings and endings going on here.

When you think about it, graduation from Pre-K and high school are not all that different.  It's at this point that kids will move on to different schools, in some cases staying back in Pre-K for another year.

Adam and I wrestled with what to do with Mason - hold him back or send him on.  Thus far in his young life, it's the most difficult decision we've had to make for him.  We went back and forth on what to do for quite a while, seeking advice from anyone and everyone.  In the end, we relied heavily on the advice of Adam's mom.  As you can tell from the picture, we decided to move him on to Kindergarten.  Academically we think he's ready, socially we hope so.  He has mostly good or excellent days at school, and keeping him with some of his friends was another factor for us to consider. 

Our Pre-K is through the kids' daycare center, which is attached to a K-6 charter school.  The charter school is one of the reasons we chose the daycare we did, since we knew if we still lived in the BCPSD, we'd want our kids to go to school elsewhere.  For the short term, this means Mason will be spending the summer with the same kids he's been with for almost 3 years now. 

 

Looking down the road though is the ending I alluded to before.  Some friends will be going to Kindergarten in their home districts, no doubt.  Some will stay back in Pre-K, either because their parents chose to hold them back or because of their birthdays.  And thankfully a few will continue on to Arbor Academy with Mason.  Two that won't are his buddies Shun and Lyle from this picture.  Shun and his family are returning to Japan in August, and Lyle is a December birthday. 

 

Miss Ireland made a slideshow movie of pictures she'd taken of the kids throughout the year.  As we watched it at their ceremony, these thoughts of beginnings and endings were running through my mind.  And if you know me, you won't be surprised to hear that tears were running down my cheeks.