A Child's Version of Groundhog Day... the Movie

School started today… again. This is the 3rd 1st day of school as Son#1 calls it. Trust me, that’s what it feels like each time. We’re all tired of it. We’re tired of having a week off, where we all sleep in, don’t have much of a routine, like a vacation or a long weekend, and then have to reenergize for a ‘1st day of school’. It’s like the movie Groundhog Day, except aimed at kids.

We parents put on a good front. “Oh! School’s tomorrow! What do you want in your lunch? Aren’t you excited about seeing all your friends again?” The resounding answer has been “no”. The kids are sick of the false starts, of just getting into their studies and having it snatched away. They’re sick of walking into a school that’s not theirs (remember ours was destroyed) and then leaving and wondering if it will be there. Their life feels temporary right now and they are exhibiting signs of the stress.

Whereas the first day of school, the FIRST time, all the kids were excited to see their friends they had not seen all summer, now they are not excited. Kids who are normally fine, are crying, begging not to go. I saw a 2nd grader, begging her Mom to take her home. She LOVES school. Kindergartners are having to readjust continually. “School. No School. School. No School.” It’s like reliving that first day over and over and if anyone recalls, not all kids actually LIKED that first day. And it runs up the line as I hear parents talking about their 4th graders choking up, pleading to stay home.

It’s a tough year. Where all y’all in the great white north are seeing advancements in your children’s education right now, the month of September was a total wash for us. In Math, my 4th grader is just now on Chapter 2. It makes me wonder what the long term ramifications will be.