Belle, age 8
When I first started my blog, I used it to record things I would like to remember, but wouldn’t likely put in a scrapbook. Not that I have scrapbooks on my kids anymore. Maybe some day I’ll get back in to scrapbooking, but for now I’ve put it aside. Unfortunately, I’ve let myself get lazy about recording much of anything here and my brain is feeling very full of things I hope to remember. My plan is to take some time to unload a few of those memories for each child over the next few days. We’ll see how it holds up!
Belle is ever the imaginative one. She creates games for the other two to play with her that are so detailed, they often get lost before they even begin playing! Her story writing has taken off in strides this year. I’m doing my best to encourage those creative outlets here at home, as I’m not seeing much evidence of such at school. Second grade has not been my favorite thus far. Her teacher is nice and caring-Belle loves her-but everything feels so serious. I don’t have any big gripes about the teacher, per se, I just don’t feel the fun. Belle’s first grade teacher warned me that it would be this way (not about the teacher specifically, but the whole grade). I suppose it wouldn’t bug me as much if Belle felt like she had a niche at school, but she just doesn’t have that this year. The girls in her class aren’t mean to her or anything, and there is one girl who seems click with Belle most days. I guess it comes down to this: Belle loves school because she loves to learn and see her teachers, but she doesn’t get excited about being with her “friends” like she has in the past. She was hurt deeply by a friend from first grade (who isn’t in her class this year) early in the year and hasn’t really rebounded from it, I think. I honestly don’t know how hard to push other friendships or rather ride out the rest of the year and pray for a better year next year. The joys of motherhood.
Ok, enough of the psychoanalyzing! Let’s move on to more fun things. I mentioned earlier that Belle likes to write books. She also likes to get Little Bear and Little Lamb to “write” them as well. After one afternoon of intense writing, wherein Belle feeds ideas to LB and LL and writes them down for them, I found a flier on my desk. It reads as follows (spelling and punctuation are hers),
“Dear Parents We will be having stories, told by your children, on stage! Pleas have your child dressed, nicley, and have the feeling of the story!”
This is so very Belle. The feeling of the story! She makes me laugh, that one. I’ve got more fun stuff on Belle, but I think I’ll divide it up into another post.
Depeche Mom 
March 6, 2010 at 9:56 am
Sounds like she is turning out to be such an incredible little girl. I miss seeing you all. Maybe one day we can all visit and I can see how much they’ve changed. Anyway, what about getting her involved in some activity outside of school where she gets friends that way? Are you still going to church? Has she made friends there? Are there any kids writing groups connected with the library? I know you seem to live kind of “out” a ways from town…but maybe with J taking a job after this year it might work out more easily?
March 6, 2010 at 5:25 pm
Grace’s second grade experience was much that way, “serious” work, and Jason’s mom said that about second grade. She loves teaching first grade more for the “fun and action”. Fortunately, third grade has had a few fun things-science experiments in class, art to support math during math class, and recently a class play. Sadly, it was a play in name only. No audience, costumes, or art, but Grace loved it nonetheless.
My take is that the serious experience of school can be made better through the “special classes” if those teachers take the extra effort-I say that because the music teacher does NOTHING extra (no concerts, specials, nothing), the kids are THRILLED about their clay projects in art class, and love P.E. Her teacher is fun, but this school district spends a lot of time with basic skills and higher order thinking skills but not so much the other stuff most of us remember about elementary school. The good part is that our kids don’t know they are missing that!
Glad Belle is doing ok despite her blah school life. And LL and LB will be agreat joy to her and you now.