Finley came home from school yesterday excited to share about the new countdown that he has in his classroom.
The countdown marks the number of school, wake ups, left for the '23 - '24 school year. They started yesterday at 31 and this morning when he woke up, he was so excited to share with me, that there was only 30 wake-ups worth of school days left, and my heart sank.
You might be thinking, he’s in first grade Kelleen, it’s not that serious. You’ve done VPK and kindergarten and now first grade, this is old hat… But this year feels different.
This year has been less of the learning the basic skills and necessities for being in school and more on actual academics. There have been weekly sight word tests and weekly spelling word tests. There has been biweekly reading test; where he reads the story to the teacher and then takes a comprehensive exam afterwards. There have been math tests and science tests, and although grades have been inputted in the grade book since kindergarten, these grades seem to actually make a difference and matter. Gone are the days of the excitement of coloring pages and spelling their name correctly and now enters the realm of 15 out of 15 on spelling tests and 55 words per minute on reading tests.
The academics of his schooling has increased and so has his desire to do well.
Finley is very academically smart and things come quickly to him, but I will not lie, not every spelling word test has been easy for him. We are really getting down to the basics with him in hopes of helping him to learn the skills required to make it through elementary school, middle school, high school and maybe one day, even college. As we enter the last 30 days of first grade, I am excited to see how much he continues to grow. It seems as each quarter of school has ended, the growth has been exponential, but as we close out the year and reflect on where he started, I cannot help but beam with pride.
Finley, my almost 2nd grader, I am so proud of your persistence and determination in your first-grade year of school. You have thrived in your academics and the friends you’ve made are everlasting. The joy you have going to school and returning home is something I hope continues throughout your whole academic career. You love your teacher and have such a great bond with her, and it’s teachers like her who makes school and more importantly, learning, fun! As you close out the last 30 days, I hope that you continue to push harder. I know that these last few weeks, with state testing, haven't been easy; there are so many expectations and much excitement over the end of the school year, but I want you to know something....
I want you to know that as we embrace the blur of award ceremonies and report cards, end of the year parties and field day, that this time of year brings a lot of bittersweet feelings among all of us!
I look at you and quickly realize that you are no longer the same kiddo that was welcomed on your first day of school. You are now a couple inches taller, and a few missing teeth. You have a different haircut and you've grown into yourself a tad bit more.
As you have learned this year, you're reading at a much higher level and you can speak with such confidence- the Finley in August would be so impressed!
While you finish out the last month of school, I hope that you continue to work on your Lexia and I-Ready minutes, to study those sight words and spelling words nightly and to maintain the knowledge you have acquired thus far. I hope you continue to create memories within the classroom, that you can hold onto for a lifetime.
I am so, looking forward to this summer, and I have dreamt of all the fun we will have as the early wakeups dissipate and our schedule changes from drop-offs and pick-ups to summer camps and vacations. But, take these last 30 days to remember your teacher. To take note of the discipline she used that made you stronger in both yourself and academics. To fester in her kindness that has made you feel safe, and the classroom where you not only spent your time learning, but laughing and genuinely liked to be in.
Finish the year out strong sweet boy! We are so damn proud of you!
XO, Mom
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