Charlie starts Kindergarten in the fall. My oh my where has the time gone. I remember when he was just 2 months old, and I interviewed a number of daycare providers. It was so stressful trying to find the perfect fit where I felt comfortable leaving my brand-new baby for 9 hours a day. I was so lucky to find our AMAZING daycare. They are truly part of our family and the perfect fit for us. After all that searching, turns out we have to start all over to find someone I feel comfortable leaving my baby with. We have to find a school that fits our family.
I went to a public magnet school called the Key School from K-5 grade. The Key School was so cool. There was a real airplane in the kindergarten room that we could play in and climb on. Besides the airplane, the Key School had great art and music programs. I was playing a school provided violin at age 5. We did pottery in art class in the kiln in the art room and we had lots of sports equipment that we used in Gym class multiple times a week. We even had classes where you could choose an interest. For example, I did Sing and Sign where we were a choir who used sign language along while singing. I also was in the puppet class where we created all types of puppets and dolls. My public school was very well funded and we had the newest computers to play Organ Trail and we had Spanish class starting in kindergarten. I really enjoyed my time at the Key School and I had a great experience.
When I moved to the middle school for 6th grade, things changed. The middle school was rougher, and I didn’t fit in well. People were talking about drugs and boys, and I was still playing Barbies. It was no longer a good fit, so my parents made the decision to move me to the private catholic school at our church. I was nervous about private school, I had to wear uniforms and there were nuns. As soon as I started at Our Lady of Lourdes, I felt like I fit again. I felt safe again. But Our Lady of Lourdes didn’t have Spanish class or a kiln or the newest computers, what they did have was a very specific focus on academics that I hadn’t had at Key School. Sure, I learned to read and write and do long division, but I remember my parents taking lots of extra time to work on these things. We were doing so many creative things in school that I think the basics became secondary. Our Lady of Lourdes whipped me in to shape and I became a very diligent student.
Our Lady of Lourdes was very different from Key School but there were some things that I liked better in my private school. Lunch was home cooked and came on a tray, at my public school you got a hot pack and a cold pack; I brought my lunch. Besides the focus on academics, Our Lady of Lourdes also had after school sports. This was something my magnet school did not provide. In 7th grade, I joined the first sports team I had ever been on; I joined the girl’s kickball team. I was awful, but I definitely learned a lot and am thankful for the sports experience. Our Lady of Lourdes also focused on the catholic faith which I think taught me to be a good person and discipline. I think the values the catholic school were something that set them apart from my public-school days.
All in all, I enjoyed my time at both my public and my private schools. But now we have to make a decision for our babies on where we feel is the best place for them to go to school. We are in Warren township and the school that Charlie would go to was graded a 5 out of 10. We obviously want the best for our children and maybe I didn’t give the public school a chance. We toured the private school Holy Name in Beech Grove. It was awesome. They were so welcoming, and we even know some of the students and teachers there. Bonus is that the daycare that we love already picks up kids there and takes them to the daycare after school. Picking up the kids at one place in the evening is a game changer. The classes are small, and the school is 2 minutes from the police and fire station. Our guts felt like this was where we were supposed to be. Charlie is registered to start Kindergarten in the fall at Holy Name. Now the only question is how are we gonna pay for this???
コメント