Amazing

wow. my kids are rocking the whole school thing lately. i think it's due to grandma's home school preschool. at least that has given them a boost.

e has participated in the school districts young author contest for 3 years. the first year she didn't get an award. but, last year she won at her school and went to the district level (with students from at least 4 grade schools) and won an honorable mention for her story. we are very proud of her. this year she again won at her school! her stories are so fun and i am so glad she enjoys writing.

i've been stressing and praying lately about where e and j were going to go to school next year. e's teacher this year is brand new and i feel he has not taught her to her potential. i was concerned that she would get another "just ok" teacher. at their school they don't take parents requests for teachers. so, with j going there next year i was also concerned about which teacher he would get. there are 4 1st grade teachers at their school and i only think one is really good teacher. i've spent time with them on field trips and such.

well, my prayers were answered for j yesterday when we got a letter in the mail from the district saying he had high academic potential and was invited to participate in the happ program. this is the program that e's kindergarten teacher was sure e would get into for 1st grade. but, because of demographics (the classroom has to be made up of the same percentage of each nationality as the district)she didn't make it. we were concerned that she'd end up with a "just ok" teacher. but, she had mrs. nott who was a great teacher. i was so glad that j was invited to be in the happ program as they do a lot of extra things. the kids are all interested in learning and the teacher doesn't have to teach to such a wide group of skill levels.

and then today the phone rang and it was the director of the happ program. he said he doesn't usually make phone calls to parents, but this was a special instance. he was calling because e had tested into the happ program. and sometimes having children at the same school makes a difference whether the parents send them to there or not. (at the end of 2nd and 4th grades the children are tested again and rearranged based on scores. it's harder to get in though because the kids in happ have a more detailed education). e made it in too!! wow, answered prayers. she won't be too thrilled about leaving her friends, but i think she'll like it once school starts.

i hope i didn't offend anyone with the way i talk about teachers. education for our children is so important. it's so hard to make sure all kids get what they need. revamped somehow.